


Maybe After

by Smellslikezombies



Category: Choices: High School Story: Class Act (Visual Novel)
Genre: Angst, Canon Rewrite, Fluff, High School, Mutual Pining, Requited Love, Secret Relationship, idk how to tag stuff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-17
Updated: 2020-02-11
Packaged: 2021-02-27 10:20:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 25,705
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22285495
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Smellslikezombies/pseuds/Smellslikezombies
Summary: This is basically a slight rewrite of the canon choices story with more detail but more focus on the relationships than the actual events going on. I also mostly focus on Ajay, so I basically cut out what's happening with Skye and Rory's parents, and if I do include it, it won't be in as much detail as the main relationship is. or basically:Playchoices High School Story: Class Act book 1, but rewritten by moi.
Relationships: Ajay Bhandari/Main Character (High School Story: Class Act)
Comments: 7
Kudos: 32





	1. Auditions and Old Friends

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! so first things first, i named the mc the default name as well as the twin sibling. I didn't want to do an entire novel in the second person, so I'm sorry if that's alienating to you guys at all. Also, I made the mc a sophomore since i don't really like how ajay is a junior and she a freshman in canon, plus i made her a little more jaded since she's already been through a year of high school, plus it gives me more control over her and ajay's arc together (wow look at me being all fancy and actually planning for once)

Waking up on a sunny morning was supposed to be the first day of the rest of her life, but instead, it was the sleepiest. Her eyes could barely open, and she was eternally grateful for the bus ride to catch up on the sleep she missed from staying up too late the night before. Sunlight streamed through the windows and she blinked heavily. _Yup. Sophomore year. When it all starts to happen,_ she thought, squinting her eyes to look out the glass at her neighbor’s window. A junior this year, she hoped that Rory would still remember her after he moved away for a year and came back. She couldn’t quite remember where he had gone, she only recalled the day after they left when a new family had suddenly started parking their U-Hauls in the driveway. Rory answered no texts or emails or calls she had sent him, and she had simply guessed that he didn’t want anything to do with her. She was pulled from her thoughts as a shape stepped into the path of the window in his room: Rory was awake. He opened the window and, upon seeing her lying in bed in her pajamas, urged her to do the same with frantic movements of his arms. She got out of bed with a sigh and slid the window up, an apathetic look on her face as she leaned her head into her hand on the windowsill.

“Bailey! I haven’t seen you since I got back!” he called, excitement painted in his features. His dark skin shone in the light of the sun and she could see his caramel eyes sparkle, even from a dozen feet away. She couldn’t help his infectious attitude and broke into a small smile. It was good for him to be back.

“I can’t believe you left without telling me, though! I figured you didn’t want to talk to me, what with all the missed messages,” she called back, eyebrow raised. He wrung his hands.

“Iー yeah, you got me there. I’m really sorry, but there was awful service wherever we traveled. My parents wanted me to get out and experience the world, so they took me on a trip around the world. I’m sorry I never got a chance to tell you ...It all happened pretty quickly,” he explained, halfway leaning out the window. Bailey figured it would do no good to hold onto the grudge she had kept for the year he had been gone; she wanted her best friend back.

“I’ll forgive you if you show me pictures after school…. And sit next to me at auditions today,” she said, grin growing as his eyes lit up at her statement. 

“Nothing would make me happier.”

* * *

“Just through here and we’ll be at auditions! Are you nervous? I think I am. I mean, Ajay knows how important acting is to me, and he saw me freshman year, but what if he thinks I’ve changed too much? Or he hates me for leaving and now he’s going to give me, like, peasant or something small? He wouldn’t play favorites, right?” Rory continued rambling until Bailey put a hand on his forearm. She cast a glance at him and indicated for him to take a deep breath with her.

“In, out. There you go. Seriously, chill. You’re an amazing actor, and if this Ajay guy doesn’t give you the spot you deserve, then that’s his mistake. Where is he, anyway?” she asked pointedly. Auditions were supposed to have started by now, and in her opinion, a good director didn’t keep people waiting. 

She had never really met the director, Ajay, despite this being her second year of high school. Too nervous to audition for anything in your freshman year, she stuck to simply watching and waiting for her chance in her sophomore year. The time had finally come, but now he was making her wait! 

Rory pointed to a dark-haired boy standing and muttering against the wall as he raked his pen down a paper attached to the clipboard in his hand. He took a pause to push up his glasses on his nose, then continued his mutterings. Before Rory could pull her back, Bailey was out of her seat and walking over to Ajay with a small smile on her face to increase her appeal. She bent down slightly to put her face in his lowered view and gave a small wave. He looked up in surprise, then furrowed his brows at her.

“Hi, I’m Bailey and I wasー,” she started to speak but was cut off by the older boy.

“Auditions will start soon. Take your seat, _please_ ,” he drawled out the last word, trying to make his point clear that he wasn’t in the mood to argue. Bailey gave a slight shake of her head as she realized how rude he was being to her. She knew that being rude back would only make it worse, and she wanted to make him feel bad for treating her that way. She put on an even nicer smile and nodded her head.

“Okay!” was all she said before she turned and bounced off. She went to return to her seat next to Rory but accidentally bumped into a tall girl with a leather jacket. She was carrying a chair, but set it down when she encountered Bailey.

“Shit, that’s my bad. We’re totally swamped backstage right now. I’m actually supposed to be auditioning, but of course, I got roped into this, too. Can you help?” she asked, pleading eyes bearing into Bailey, who shrugged and nodded. 

“Sure. Bailey, by the way,” she gave an informal introduction.

“Danielle. Can you do me a favor and look for a big black box and bring it out to center stage? We need it for Jordan to stand on during her ‘audition,’” Danielle sarcastically spoke, complete with air quotes around “audition.” 

“What’s with the air quotes?” 

“You don’t know? Jordan is obviously going to get the Princess role,” Danielle rolled her eyes before leaning closer to Bailey. “Ajay says he doesn’t play favorites, but he obviously does. She gets the lead in everything.”

Bailey raised her eyebrows in surprise and snuck a glance back at Ajay, who was in the same spot, but flipping through papers this time. She took in his appearance: slightly mussed hair from all the times he’d run his hands through it, tall and lean figure with a hint of muscle underneath his sleeves, a sharp jawline, and full lips. If he hadn’t been so rude earlier, Bailey might have been nervous to speak to him going off of looks alone. She wondered what his hair looked like when it was even messier, like when he wakes up in the morning or while sheー

“He’s a good-looking guy, no?” Danielle pulled Bailey out of what could have been a very embarrassing reverie. She stuttered, but gave up on talking and just nodded. 

“Big black box? I’m on it,” Bailey brought a hand up to her face to hide the blush rising to her cheeks and hurried off to find the item. 

She had looked in each room backstage before wandering into the prop room. A red-headed girl with dark eyeliner and a lip ring cast a glance from where she was rifling through costumes. Upon seeing who it was, she gave a slight nod and returned to her task. 

“Hi, sorry, do you know where a big black box is? Jordan needs it for her audition,” Bailey tentatively questioned, not wanting to cause too much trouble. The girl simply jabbed her thumb behind her, pointing to the item she needed under a counter. Bailey spoke her thanks and rolled the box out to the stage. Before she could leave, she heard the girl speak. 

“I’m Skye, by the way.” Bailey smiled and nodded. 

“Bailey.”

* * *

As she rolled the box onstage, she saw Ajay standing, apparently giving announcements about auditions. He stopped at her arrival and gave her an impatient glare. She gives him a sickly sweet smile in return before sitting back down. He continues talking.

“Before we continue with auditions, I’d just like to say a few things. For one, I know you all are extremely talented, and I will try to showcase that as best I can in this show. Plus, I want you all to know that I may seem like a hardass, but I’m here for you, as a director and a friend. Third, I want you all to have fun with this! Are we ready?” Although he added more emotion to his third point, he still seemed anxious and fidgety. Bailey couldn’t decide if she thought it was endearing or not. “I’m going to bring up different pairings I’d like to see together reading for different parts. I know that’s not how normal auditions work, but I’d like things to move quickly so we can get rehearsing as soon as possible.” He gave an awkward thumbs up and sat next to the theatre teacher, Mr. Olson, in a row a little bit higher than the rest of the kids. The auditions began.

* * *

The auditions went on, Bailey only being brought up to read the small parts. Soon, it was time for Jordan to read for the Princess, and Rory the knight. Bailey thought back to what Danielle had said about Jordan and eagerly watched to see if it was true. Jordan brought the big box from upstage to stand on for her scene. However, as soon as she started reciting her lines, the box rolled. She fell and hit the ground with a _thud_ , the snap of her bone reverberating through a silent auditorium. Within a few seconds, a pained wailing filled the room as people rushed to her side.

“Good lord! Jordan, are you okay?” Ajay was the first onstage to tend to her, and Bailey could see the panic in his eyes as he took her arm to support her. With a wince, she nodded.

“Feels like a sprain. I….want you to continue the auditions. I’ll be fine, I promise,” she said through gritted teeth. Ajay looked at her in bewilderment, setting her gingerly into an aisle seat. She propped her foot on the arm of the seat in front of her and waved her hand. “I’ll keep watching until my mom gets here. Keep going!” 

Ajay knew he wouldn’t win the fight against Jordan, so he simply nodded and continued calling names up to read for roles. 

“Uh…. Bailey. Read for the witch. I want Danielle up for the Princess. Rory, keep reading for the knight, please.” he called. Bailey looked at Rory in surprise. 

“He wants me?”

“Well, go up there!” Rory whisper-yelled and shooed her to go on stage. She grabbed her script and flipped it to the scene Ajay wanted. Butterflies fluttered in her stomach, but she quickly swallowed them down and prepared to work hard. 

Danielle walked onto the stage looking quite pleased with herself at her role. Bailey cast a curious glance at her expression before taking her place and starting the scene. 

\--

“That was…. Fantastic! I mean…. Wow. Now, just before I end things, can I see the scene again, but with Bailey in Danielle’s role, and vice versa?” Ajay called, shuffling papers in his lap. Danielle scoffed and glanced at Bailey.

“I think Bailey did fine as the witch!” Ajay furrowed his brows at Danielle’s disagreement with his choices.

“And I’m thinking about what she would be like as Princess. Switch, please,” Ajay rolled his eyes as Danielle turned her back on him and switched positions with Bailey. The scene played out once more with the changes, and Bailey could see, even in the low light of the theatre, that Ajay was impressed. The thought made the butterflies come back again, but she willed them away. 

“I’ll post the list in about an hour. Thank you so much, everyone, for your performances today.” Ajay collected the papers in his hands and walked with Mr. Olson backstage for the deliberation.

  
  



	2. Clashing and Rescuing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tensions soar after the cast list is posted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lmao im really bad at summaries. anyways, enjoy!!!

Bailey pushed her way to the front of the crowd that had gathered around the cast list, but Danielle stepped in front of her just before she could read it. Taking a small step back, Bailey heard Danielle exclaim before she whipped around to face her. 

“You’re the worst! I deserved the Princess!” Danielle jabbed her finger in Bailey’s face, who took another step back in surprise. Ajay, upon hearing the commotion, parted the crowd. His voice rang out clear and stern.

“Danielle. If you aren’t happy with the roles, I’m sure we can find some alternative. You don’t get to blame my actors for my decision.” He walked over to her, gently pushing Bailey behind him. She felt her skin tingle where he touched her arm. Her cheeks burned at the thought of her reaction, and she cast her head down to avoid being seen as Ajay confronted her. “Do we have a problem?”

Danielle shot one more deadly glance towards Bailey, but Ajay shifted to completely block Bailey’s small frame from the angry girl’s view. Danielle shook her head before stomping off. Ajay turned to Bailey and put a hand on her shoulder, concern replacing the fire that had been in his eyes. She could feel her face alight once more, but she still looked into his eyes.

“Are you alright?” A simple question, but Bailey could only stumble over her words in response. 

“Uh… I—yes, I’m fine. Thank you,” she finally spit it out and went to turn around, but Ajay tightened his grip ever so slightly on her shoulder to let her know not to leave. 

“You did great work today,” was all he said before offering a small smile and releasing his grip. Internally, Bailey ached to have it back. She shook the feeling off and gave him a simple nod. 

It may have been redundant, but she still checked the list to make sure she really got the role. There was her name with an ellipsis that led to the word in Ajay’s bold handwriting: PRINCESS. Danielle’s ellipses led to the complete opposite: WITCH. _So_ that’s _why she was so upset,_ Bailey brought a nail up to her mouth and chewed on it as she thought. She walked around to find Rory, who was to play the Knight, talking to a junior girl named Erin, who had gotten the King role. 

“Hey, congrats on the King! You were incredible up there,” Bailey said in an attempt to join the conversation casually. Erin smiled and moved to include her in a small circle between the three students.

“Thanks! You’re gonna be incredible as the Princess, though. Ajay made the right choice,” Erin offered, causing Bailey to nervously chuckle and Rory to smile at the two. 

“Yes! I can’t wait for the read-through,” he said. “I’m gonna get the car for whenever you’re ready to head out, Bailey.” He raced off, still brimming with excitement for his lead role. Before she could follow, Erin gently pulled on Bailey’s sleeve. 

“Congrats on Ajay, too,” she said with a sly mile. Bailey risked a glance toward the boy in question, only to find him looking back at her. His eyes widened at being caught and he quickly looked down at his papers. She looked back to Erin, whose face was adorned with a knowing look. 

“What do you mean about Ajay?”

“He _never_ compliments someone so quickly. Especially not to the caliber of saying ‘great.’ Plus, don’t think I didn’t see him looking over here. I think he likes you. At least a little bit,” Erin explained and playfully poked Bailey, who laughed and shook her head. “Too bad about his whole cast rule, though.” Bailey cocked her head to the side.

“What rule?”

“He doesn’t let cast members date. Too messy, he says,” Erin raised an eyebrow and nudged Bailey, who had gone back to quickly looking at Ajay and then glancing back to her conversation. “You could be the exception.’ The older girl winked.

“Well, that’s insane, but this has been fun. We’ll have to hang out more,” Bailey quickly tried to change the subject, but Erin remained relentless.

“You, me, and _Ajay_ should hang out, yeah?” She said. Bailey just rolled her eyes and smiled before yelling out a goodbye as she walked away to Rory’s car so they could both go home after a stressful day. 

Her skin still tingled where Ajay’s touch had rested on her shoulder. 

* * *

The day of the first read-through had arrived a few days after auditions, and Bailey was nervous for so many different reasons. She slowly counted them off in her head; number one was Danielle. 

_She’s definitely going to still be hella angry at me for getting a part even though it wasn’t my decision. She could do_ way _more to completely mess me up. I bet it’s because of Rory. I didn’t let that kissing scene with the Knight slip my mind, and I’m betting that she didn’t either._

Number two was having the Princess role at all. 

_What if people are mad because they expected Jordan to be in the role? I could be completely isolated from everyone just because of an accident I had nothing to with._

Third was Ajay. Bailey hadn’t stopped thinking about him since auditions, which hasn’t gone unnoticed by Erin, who was her new favorite partner in theatre class. 

_If he does like me, will that affect how he acts around me? What if_ I _like him?_ The thought set off red alarms in her head as she walked to the auditorium. _No matter what, I’ll just have to be casual. Totes cas. Shit, don’t say that aloud._

“ _Totes cas_ ? Are we bringing that back from, like, ‘84, or….?” Erin piped up from beside her, a mischievous twinkle in her eye. “And I wouldn’t worry about Ajay, he’s very professional. Or, as you would say, _totes profesh!_ ”

“Oh, shut up!” Bailey got over her embarrassment and giggled before finding her seat in the circle of desks set up in the middle of the stage. Each desk had a script with the actor and character on it as well as a different colored highlighter for each person. She sat down, but stiffened when she realized that Ajay was in the seat next to her. Thoughts raced as she questioned whether it was intentional, but she was interrupted with everyone’s eyes on her after Ajay said something. 

“Uh, sorry, what?” she asked. Danielle scoffed at her confusion.

“Lead role material right here, folks,” she joked, raising an eyebrow at Bailey. Ajay silenced those who laughed with a single look before turning to her. 

“We’re going around and just saying who we are, our role, and an interesting fact about ourselves. It’s torture, I know, but I’d prefer us to get to know each other a bit more,” he gave her a small smile and nodded encouragingly. Bailey took a deep breath and spoke clearly.

“Well, I’m Bailey, I’m playing the Princess. I guess an interesting fact about me is that I, along with my twin brother Casey, were adopted when we were babies,” she could hear the immediate unrest and whispered conversations around the circle that was typical after saying such a thing. Danielle piped up from a few seats away. 

“Why didn’t your parents want you?” she asked, malicious intent behind the seemingly innocent question made obvious by her smile. 

“I don’t know. And Danielle?” Bailey looked her dead in the eye. “If you want to insinuate shit or spread rumors about me, that’s fine. Just know that it makes you look like a major moron when they don’t turn out to be true.” Skye, who had joined the circle as lead tech advisor, struggled to hold in a laugh as she hid her smile behind her script. Ajay stood up from his desk and slammed his hands on the wood. 

“Both of you, come with me.”

* * *

“Listen, I’m sorry for saying that to her, but can you blame me? If I can already feel that I’m getting bullied, then I’m going to do something about it. I understand if you want to take me off the cast list, or demote me to Peasant #5, but good lord, Ajay, at least let me defend myself,” Bailey argued for herself against her director. He had taken them both to Mr. Olson’s office but made each wait outside as he talked to the other in the room. Ajay paced the room, but when she talked about changing her role, he stopped walking and whipped his head up to look at her. 

“Who said anything about taking you off? I underestimated you, and I’m not going to be afraid to admit it. But when you did that scene as Princess, I ...felt something.” Ajay’s cheeks burned bright red after realizing the insinuation of what he said. “Wait—That— I didn’t mean it like that. Jordan is an amazing actor, but behind all the words she was saying and blocking she was doing, there was still not much emotion. But with your performance…. You felt what you were saying against the Witch. You deserve to be Princess.” Bailey looked down at her feet at the high compliment. Ajay was suddenly hyper-aware of how close he was to her, just a step and he would be a few inches from her face. She only came up to his chin, and he wondered what it would be like if he tilted her head up and their—

“Ajay?”

  
  



	3. Mistakes and Feelings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a bumpy read-through, rehearsals continue without a hitch...but feelings really do be like that

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi, i randomly switch perspectives so much in this fic, yall can tell me if you have whiplash lmao. also again i'm really bad at summaries, but some of this will be in 3rd person but focusing on ajay and some of it will be focusing on bailey. ill try to keep it consistent oof also also sorry for the weird spacing i write this in google docs and then transfer it over so it might look kinda iffy in some parts

“Ajay?” 

The word brought him back to the present and he realized that he had brought a finger to lift her head up so she was looking into his eyes. He had leaned closer to her and could count the freckles that dusted her nose. He felt the sudden urge to make constellations out of them. 

“I, uh,” he took a step back and wiped his palms on his pants. She looked bewildered, and he hated himself for putting her in that position. “ _Fuck_. I’m so sorry, Bailey. I really don’t know what happened to me. You can leave. I’ll be out in a minute after I talk to Dani.” He put his face in his hands and sat on one of the couches in his teacher’s office. 

“It’s— I’ll see you out there, Ajay,” was all she spoke before she briskly walked out. Danielle walked in a moment later, but stood awkwardly when she saw Ajay with his head still in his hands. She jumped a little when he snapped his head up to look at her with a glare. 

“What the hell was that, Danielle?” Her eyes widened in fear and she opened her mouth to respond but was cut off by his fury. “No, I’m going to tell you what the hell that was. That was you taking cheap shots at the new girl because you want to have her role to get closer to Rory. Am I wrong?” He didn’t wait for her answer. “You could have single-handedly caused her to quit theatre, something she is obviously extremely good at, because of your personal feelings for her co-star and your own vendetta and disgusting comments about her. You’re lucky I’m not taking you off the cast.” Danielle looked up at his last statement.

“You’re not?” 

“No. But I swear, if I hear from _anyone_ that you were talking about any of the cast in any way worse than constructive criticism, you’re gonna need to watch your ass. Understand?” Ajay crossed his arms and straightened his posture to seem more intimidating. He’d never considered himself so, but he felt weirdly protective over this new girl. He would never have gotten so angry if someone else had been involved, so why was he going so hard for Bailey? Danielle nodded and walked out without a word, leaving Ajay alone in the office for a few minutes before he left to join the rest of the cast.

“Sorry for that interruption, everyone, but it’s of utmost importance to me that we have a safe and productive space here. If you all have a problem with that, I have _no_ problem with taking you off the cast,” he gave an awkward smile that contradicted his previous statement before sitting down and motioning to Rory to begin reading. Halfway through the script, he felt a slight pressure on his knee as Bailey moved her leg to touch his. He muffled a surprised sound with a cough, but couldn’t help but smile throughout the rest of the rehearsal. 

* * *

“Erin, it was wild, okay? Like, at first we were just talking about how I was staying on the cast, and then he said that I _deserved_ to be Princess?” Bailey practically yelled into the phone at her friend, who squealed so hard on the other end of the line that holding the phone away from her ear was the only way to save Bailey’s hearing. “I didn’t even get to the best part!” She was interrupted by Casey slamming her door open.

“Can you keep it down? I need to get bulked up for the team if I’m even gonna _think_ about starting this season.”  
  
“Sorry, dude. This is major boy info, therefore it must be yelled. Put headphones in.” Bailey went back to her phone. 

“Wait, really? Who is it?” Casey asked, interested in the drama more than his bench-pressing. 

“Ajay, my director. We kind of had a ...moment, if you will, today at rehearsal. I was just filling Erin in on it. Say ‘hi,’ Erin!” Bailey pressed the speakerphone button as Erin yelled a greeting to Casey. 

“Well, keep going. I wanna listen.” 

“Wait, your brother actually listens to your boy drama?” Erin sounded incredulous through the crackling of the phone. “Wait, I’m like two minutes away, lemme come over and hear it in person.”

Bailey waited patiently for Erin to arrive before recounting everything that happened in person to both her sibling and her friend.

“—and then he said that he was sorry and that I could leave. I felt really bad, like I should’ve said something, but I figured I might mess it up more, you know?” Bailey finished recounting her experience and looked at Erin and Casey. They were both slack-jawed and wide-eyed. “What?”

“Girl, he’s in love with you! It’s totally obvious!” Erin exclaimed. 

“What about his rule, though?” Bailey asked. Casey cocked his head, so she explained before he could ask. “Ajay has a rule against relationships among the cast, directors included.”

“Oh, screw that! He’d gladly break his own rule for you, wouldn’t he?” Casey said, throwing his hands up in frustration. “He’d be insane not to.” 

“It wouldn’t be a good example for others in the show, and he really does have a point about it. Usually, real life couples have no chemistry onstage, and if they break up, then they have completely _wrong_ energy,” Erin explained. She turned to face Bailey. “I’ve heard about some shows that fell apart because the leads broke up and even quit. Imagine that, but the _director_. Honestly, right now, all you can do is play the waiting game until the show ends, but just make sure he doesn’t think you’ve lost interest in him.” Bailey nodded and took a deep breath. 

“I think I can handle that.”

* * *

After a few more weeks of rehearsal, the set was being put together from the genius of Skye’s mind and everyone was off-book. Ajay seemed to love how everything was going, and the cast was using that energy to keep morale up during the longer-than-usual rehearsals. After a late Friday rehearsal, Bailey, Rory, Ajay, and Danielle had elected to stay even later while everyone else had already packed up and gone home for the weekend. Rory pulled Bailey aside and quickly asked her a question.

“Hey, can we talk before we go home? Just something I want to discuss with you before we leave. Nothing too serious.” He was fidgety and nervous, and Bailey went the rest of rehearsal wondering what it could be. Ajay finally dismissed everyone, and Rory went around to the front lot to pull the car around to pick Bailey up and go home. 

“Hey, Ajay, need help?” Bailey walked into the prop room to find Ajay looking at himself in the mirror on the wall. The weight of the world was on his shoulders from the reflection of himself, but he put on a mask as soon as she spoke. She still caught him. “You okay?”

“Yeah.”

“You’re not allowed to lie.”

“Oh. In that case, definitely not.” He let out a little chuckle and suddenly noticed that this was the first time they had been alone since the first readthrough, which seemed like ages ago. The memory was distant, but as he recalled it, was brought back like a chilly breeze reminiscent of winter when the season had supposedly changed. Each rehearsal since then had been strictly professional, but he couldn’t help his slipped gaze as she performed or his lingering touch when he showed her the new blocking for a scene. 

“You need to destress. All this pressure on you can’t be good for you,” she walked over to join him beside the mirror and he stiffened at her close proximity; they were shoulder-to-shoulder but he couldn’t help but wish for more. 

“See, this is what I mean. You’re so tense. Unclench your jaw and release your shoulders.” He did what she instructed and watched his reflection change enormously. She took a few steps to find herself behind him and gently pushed down on his shoulders to encourage him to sit on a small stool in front of the wall. She firmly kneaded the heel of her hands into his upper back. After just a few minutes, his eyes drooped and he felt more relaxed than he had in years. 

She hummed a small tune quietly, and Ajay found his mind wandering to how she would sound when she sang fully. He imagined her to sound truly beautiful and effortless, but still with so much care that it brought everyone to tears. He believed it was at the same caliber as her acting. Her hands left his shoulders, and he found himself missing the soft warmth through his shirt. 

“All done. Feel better?” she asked, giving him a lopsided smile in the mirror. He could only nod. He had never really been the receiver of one of her smiles; he’d only ever seen it when she laughed with her friends or acted with Rory. “Good. You deserve it. I am going to head out, though. I’ll see you around?” He nodded again, but he felt the need to say something. 

“Bailey.” She turned around and he realized he didn’t have a plan. _Say something, moron!_ “See you around.” _That’s it?_ She gave another toothy smile, and he couldn’t bring himself to care about how stupid he sounded when he had still gotten one of the purest smiles from her. He went back to doing costume inventory when he heard shouting from the house of the theatre.

“What’s going on?” He walked to stand on the stage and saw Bailey frantically trying all of the doors. 

“We’re locked in!”


	4. Shy Glances and Exposed Skin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> thoughts come out as Ajay and Bailey are trapped together in school for a night feat. pining to the MAX

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my bestie told me to post all the chapters i have at once, so enjoy!!

“What are you talking about, locked in?”

“Well, doors normally open, right? Not the case here. I’ve checked them all.” Bailey frantically ran up the stairs to the stage and faced Ajay. “Are these all the doors to get out of here?”

“Well yeah, the auditorium is basically a peninsula. The double doors up there connect it to the school while the doors on the side go outside. Did everyone leave?” his eyes widened at the thought.

“No, Rory should still be waiting for me. I need my…. Damn it. Ajay, where did you put our phones?” The entire cast had been annoyed at Ajay’s ban on phones, but for workdays like these, he considered complete focus essential. At her request, he paled and coughed.

“Mr. Olson’s class….which is locked right now. I’m so sorry, Bailey, if I’d known something like this would’ve happened I would have—,” he started to apologize but she cut him off. As he was talking, she had walked over the doors with small windows that gave a clear view of the parking lot.

“Rory’s not here. Why would he leave without me?” she thought out loud, more to herself than anyone else. Ajay felt a pang of jealousy with the mention of Rory, but he tried to will it down. His next words came out angry.

“Maybe he thought you weren’t coming.” Bailey’s head whipped around to face him, eyebrows furrowed and eyes alight. 

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Without thinking, Ajay crossed his arms and grounded himself. He was tall, but despite his best efforts, Bailey still came off as more intimidating. 

“Well, maybe if you hadn’t been so focused on leaving with Rory, you would’ve noticed the doors and we wouldn’t be in this mess,” he snapped at her, blood boiling. He knew that this anger wasn’t meant for her but he couldn’t stop himself.

“Ah, yes. Because _I_ control the doors just as overbearingly as _you_ control everything else! Rory has shit all to do with any of this, so don’t bring him up. Maybe, instead of attacking someone else, you should focus on your own shortcomings for once.” With a huff, Bailey stomped off and sat in one of the soft, cushiony seats near her bag. Not wanting her to get the last word, Ajay yelled after her.

“So sorry that you can’t handle criticism whenever your boyfriend’s involved. And boyfriend is a pretty loose term seeing as he traveled the world and still can't get far enough away from you.” As soon as he said it, he deeply regretted it. She pulled out a small iPod and some earbuds from her bag before turning to face his direction.

“ _Fuck. You_.” The absolute fury behind her words cut him more than anything else she could’ve said to him, but he didn’t want to back down. His feet pounded on the thin wood as he walked backstage on the verge of tears. He sat in the prop room, looking at his reflection and hating it. Just a few minutes before, she had been looking at him with soft eyes and a goofy grin, humming a sweet song as they shared a tender moment. Now he’d ruined it. Everything. He anxiously rubbed his eyes hard, trying to wipe the past clean with the swirls that dotted his vision. He looked at his reflection again and took in his appearance.

His hair was slightly unkempt from all the times he’d attempted to smooth it down. Blush still dotted his cheeks from his anger, and he could see the freckles he always tried to hide a little bit clearer against the dark pink. His undereye circles were especially bad today, and he wished he had used a little more concealer before he rushed to school. His mouth naturally sat in a straight line, but with the stress of the show, the corners fell slightly to give him an everlasting frown. He gave himself a fake smile in the mirror, just to see how he would look. His dimple was much more evident, and he dropped the smile when he saw it. He heard a slight giggle from the doorway and quickly turned around, smoothing his wrinkled button-down. Bailey was watching him with what looked like piqued interest, her arms crossed in front of her chest as she casually leaned against the doorway... 

“Is this what you do after every fight you have?” she asked, a slight twinkle in her eye evident, even from across the room. He stuttered, and she held up her hand. “I just wanted to apologize. We both said some shit, but I don’t want it to affect us, you know? I’m sorry for what I said about you being controlling. I mean, you are, but in a good way. It pushes me to be better.” He kept staring at her after she finished talking, focusing on how soft her lips looked and how he just wanted to kiss her. He wondered what her lips would feel like other places, like on his neck or his collarbone. He was brought back to the present with her speaking again. “Okay, I guess this was all for naught. I’m going to go look for food somewhere, and you can continue moping here.” He racked his brain to think of something to say.

“Wait!” she turned back to him. “I ... have a stash. Of food, I mean. For when I’m here late. And,” he struggled to find the right words, “I’m sorry, too. I crossed a line, and I didn’t mean any of it. Just the thought of you and Ro— Never mind. I’m sorry.” 

She gave him an odd look but still dropped the subject. “Well, show me your stash!” He smiled at her and walked to the other end of the room. He unbuttoned his shirt and took it off to reveal his thin white undershirt before reaching his arms up to a cabinet on the wall. He didn’t know it, but Bailey was watching the small sliver of brown skin that had been exposed from his shirt riding up. She could make out the top of his boxers, too, and thinking of him in them made her face turn red. Her breath hitched as he brought down a box full of fruit snacks, Cheez-Its, junk food, and candy. The box must’ve been filled to the brim because she could see his biceps flexing. He wasn’t completely ripped, which wasn’t very attractive to her anyway, but his body made it obvious that he worked out in some way. She wondered why he always covered up in long sleeve shirts and blazers if he had so much to show off. He gave her a look.

“You okay?” 

“Uh, yeah. Just hungry. Plus it’s really hot in here,” she said, but Ajay didn’t believe her. He still decided to let it go.

“Yeah. We can eat it in the house if you’d like,” he offered. She simply nodded and led the way to her seat.

“So, why do you have all this stuff?” Once they were all settled, she started picking through the contents of the box and choosing what she wanted to eat. 

“Most of it is leftovers from old parties. Well, the stuff that didn’t expire or go stale. Some of it I bring from home for the late nights. This is kind of like my home away from home, so I usually stay here every day. It’s weird, though, they never lock the doors so early,” his forehead creased and he ripped open a bag of Sour Patch Kids. “How long do you think we’ll stay here?”

The sun had gone down outside and they both knew that it was unlikely someone would come over the weekend ahead. Still, they wanted to have hope. 

“Well, someone might come tomorrow. I doubt either of our parents would let us stay missing for two days,” Bailey said, chewing on a twinkie, deep in thought. She looked up at Ajay when he sighed and put his face in his hands.

“Ah, Mohit is going to be so worried,” he breathed out. Bailey cocked her head.

“Mohit?”

“My little brother. He’s insane, but he always stays up late until I get home. He doesn’t sleep well if I don’t tuck him in for bed.” Bailey calmly rubbed her hand on his back, wanting to provide comfort but not knowing how. 

“I’m sure he’ll be fine. We’re going to get out of this as soon as possible, yeah?” Ajay just nodded and tried to distract himself with another bag of sweet and sour treats while Bailey thought of something to put their minds off of the odd situation they were in.

“Wanna play truth or truth?”

“Truth or truth?” Ajay looked at her with raised eyebrows.

“Yeah, it’s like truth or dare, but you get two truths and you choose one to answer. I figured it would be more fun since it’s just us, so the dares wouldn’t be very good,” Bailey explained, grabbing his upper arm and shaking it. Ajay’s skin tingled at her touch, but he nodded, causing her to let out a holler of joy. 

“Okay, I’ll ask you first. What got you into directing?”

“I just loved theatre, but I wasn’t as good of an actor as others. In the first play of my high school career, I sent an application for stage manager. I absolutely loved it, plus it got me to work closely with the director, who became something like my mentor. He was a senior but wanted someone who he thought could handle the stress to be sort of like his replacement. I was a wide-eyed freshman, but I knew what I wanted to do,” he looked upon the memory with admiration. “The next play was a simple comedy, pretty straightforward, so I got to direct it, and it went perfectly.” Bailey watched him recount it with fascination. “Now, my question for you is…. Why am I only just seeing you? You’re an amazing actor.”

Bailey thought about her answer for a few seconds before speaking. “I was honestly really scared. I wanted to audition for things, but I didn’t want to get rejected. Plus I wanted to focus more on surviving my first year of high school. I do regret it though because I would have loved to be part of something so amazing a little sooner. Plus I would’ve gotten to meet you sooner,” she said the last part quietly, but Ajay still heard it. His heart beat faster and he smiled. 

“I would’ve liked that, too.”

  
  



	5. Accidents

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ajay and Bailey's night together continued feat another fight and cute stories

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i hope you guys like this one!! i had a lot of fun with the ending scene

The game wore on as the two shared secrets with one another over the crinkling of wrappers and laughter. The questions had gotten more and more personal as the game continued, prompting funnier stories to be swapped. 

“So you’ve seriously gone skinny dipping?!” Bailey gasped and jokingly fanned herself at the thought. “Well, Ajay, how scandalous!” He threw his head back and laughed louder than any time Bailey had heard him before. She could’ve gotten drunk on his laugh, and she decided that she never wanted to stop hearing it. 

“It was a dare in sophomore year. I had to streak and then run naked into my neighbor’s pool. Luckily, they were gone on holiday, so they didn’t have to deal with the surprise of having a naked teenager screaming in their pool,” Ajay snorted and took a sip of his water bottle. Bailey’s mind wandered to what he must’ve looked like. She thought about what other muscles he was hiding under modest clothing, but he pulled her out of her head with his own question. “So, now that I’ve said mine, what’s the craziest thing _you’ve_ ever done?”

She tapped her pointer finger on her chin and hummed. “I went to a party once, something my friend dragged me to over the summer. I started feeling really nauseous, and when I feel like that, I have this weird thing where I have to go and sit in a bathtub to calm down. Just a weird habit, I guess.” Ajay raised his eyebrows. “Shut up! I didn’t even get to the good part. So, I went to sit in this random person’s tub in an upstairs bathroom, but I forgot to lock the door. I could barely speak, I had my head between my knees, and I felt like I was about to pass out, so I just pulled the curtain shut and vibed. 

“A few minutes later, I hear the door open and a couple walked in, drunk out of their _minds_. They’re giggling and shushing each other, and then…. I hear a pair of pants unzip,” Bailey looked to Ajay, whose mouth hit the floor.

“Shut up! They did it right there? And you had to sit there and _listen?_ ” he asked incredulously. Bailey just nodded and laughed. 

“Maybe not the craziest thing _I’ve_ done, but going to that party was definitely something else.” Ajay shook his head. 

“That must’ve taken some serious guts. I applaud you,” Ajay held out his fist for a bump. Bailey returned the gesture and checked her iPod for the time.

“It’s getting pretty late, we should probably sleep. Do you still have that prop bed from last year’s musical? We could probably sleep on that,” Bailey offered. Ajay grimaced and shook his head.

“There are a lot of ... rumors about that bed. Or more specifically, the things that have happened on it. I think our safest bet would be the floor or the chairs.”

“I vote chairs.”

“Seconded.”

“All in favor, say ‘aye.’”

They both say the word simultaneously before letting out giggles. Settling into the chair and throwing her jacket around her shoulders, she whispered a small good night to Ajay, who responded in kind. Just as she was drifting off, she could feel her head loll onto his shoulder. She was too tired to move so she nestled her head into the crook of his neck. Ajay set his own head on top of hers and grabbed his blazer from the seat next to him to throw on her too. Together, they slept in the cushioned but uncomfortable chairs. 

* * *

Bailey was the first to wake to the sunlight streaming through the high windows of the auditorium. The curtains on them were pulled up, bathing the large room in light. She took a deep breath and inhaled the scent of Old Spice before pushing her head deeper into her pillow. Except, her pillow at home didn’t smell like cologne, and her pillow from home didn’t feel like a shoulder. She sat up quickly and finally realized that last night wasn’t a dream and that she had shared some of her deepest secrets with her director who she was basically falling hard for and that her parents would be crazy worried about how she never got home last night. Her mind raced while Ajay stirred next to her.

“What time is it?” He looked at her with a groggy look. His hair was messy from sleep and Bailey recalled how she had wondered about this exact moment when she first met him. She grabbed her iPod and turned it on.

“About five in the morning. It looks like we didn’t sleep for too long,” she informed, gingerly handing back his blazer. He took it and threw it over the chair next to him. He left his button-down in the prop room, so he still was only dressed in his undershirt and a pair of jeans that had been pulled down to reveal more of the band of his boxers in the night. He yawned and stretched, and Bailey found herself, once again, looking at the large portion of his toned abdomen that had revealed itself as well as his underwear. _Totally unfair that he gets to look this good_ , her mouth was open and she was slightly drooling before she caught herself and looked away. 

“I have a question,” she found herself speaking without a thought and was surprised at how forward she was being. He looked at her and fixed his glasses. “Why do you have that dating rule?” He raised his eyebrows and sat back in the chair, hands behind his head. It took everything within Bailey not to take a finger and pull his shirt up to reveal even more of his body.

“My first ever show was actually at this theatre camp over the summer before freshman year. There was this girl that I really liked, and she was acting as a lead with this guy named Martin. Well, long story short, they fell for each other, which completely messed with my head. Their chemistry onstage, however, dropped. It was like watching two walls try and act; there was no emotion. 

“And then the fighting started. They bickered over every little thing, and because of my own feelings, I could do nothing to stop it because I didn’t want to hurt her feelings. It was a mess, and it only got worse when she quit the show three days before opening night. We had to have her replacement read from the script while on stage since we didn’t have understudies. I almost quit directing,” Ajay finished with a sigh thinking back on the memory. Bailey felt sorry for him; no one deserved to have something they loved ruined by other people’s selfishness. She checked the time again: 6:02. She tried to think of something to do, but couldn’t focus with the feeling of his warmth so close to her. _God, I’m pathetic. A cute boy sits next to me and I lose all function. Get it together._

“What do you want to do?” Ajay seemed to read her mind and looked to her for an answer. 

“Well, we could continue the game of Truth or Truth from last night….” she leaned closer to him and nudged him, causing him to laugh and cover his face.

“Oh lord, I actually told you some crazy stuff last night, didn’t I?” He pushed his glasses up to his forehead and rubbed his eyes. “Well, what questions would you like to ask me?”

“How about…. How many people have kissed?” Bailey’s blood rushed in her ears, and she prayed he wouldn’t get suspicious. 

“Three,” he answered with no hesitation, and Bailey raised her eyebrows. “One of them was a stage kiss, one was the first and last time I ever got drunk and kissed my friend Connor for New Year’s, and one was accidental because I turned my head too fast when a girl gave me a kiss on the cheek.” He laughed. “How about you?”

“One. Rory and I used to put on stupid shows for our parents, and we accidentally kissed during one in middle school.” At the mention of Rory, Ajay’s anger returned. He leaned forward in his chair and wrung his hands.

“Oh.”

“What?” she asked, tone defensive at his sudden shift.

“Nothing. I—Never mind,” he abruptly stood and Bailey flinched. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry for something I don’t understand. Why are you being weird?” she stood up and faced him, faintly aware of his body heat so close to her. 

“I’m not,” Ajay gritted his teeth, his forehead creased and jaw tense. She scoffed at him.

“I’m not stupid, Ajay. What is it with you and Rory? I thought you were friends.”  
  


“We are.”

“Then how come every time I mention him, you get weird?” 

“I don’t get weird!” Ajay took a step back and stuttered. Bailey opened her mouth to yell and took a step forward but tripped over her bag in the narrow aisle. She let out a yelp and fell forward, bringing her hands up to her face to protect her from the fall, but she never hit the ground. Ajay’s arms were wrapped around her waist, and she became acutely aware of his hands touching the skin of her stomach thanks to her cropped band t-shirt. Her hands were on his chest and he looked down at her in his arms.

“Are you okay?” He bent down to get eye level with her and brought a hand up to push his glasses back up his nose. She nodded and took a deep breath, not caring about whether she smelled or not. He was so _close_ , she could barely handle it. He started to lean forward, bringing his face even closer, sending short glances down to her lips and leaning his head to the side. She began to do the same and shivered from the anticipation.

The sound of a lock clicking interrupted their moment. One of the side doors opened and they jumped apart as Bailey’s brother walked in.

  
  
  



	6. I Don't Want to Be Your Friend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A rescue, a fight, and a dance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi there!! I hope you're enjoyin this so far!! please remember to hydrate tho, and get up and stretch if you've been chilling here for a while!!

“Bailey! We’ve been crazy worried!” he ran over to the beginning of the rows of seats and waited for the two to walk out so he could hug his sister. “Ajay, your parents are outside, too. Are you guys alright? How’d you even get in here, anyway?” Bailey and Ajay cast loaded glances at each other trying to determine who should speak first. Ajay opened his mouth, but Bailey beat him to the punch.

“We stayed really late last night but after Danielle and Rory left, I guess the doors locked. We were backstage, so we couldn’t have heard anyone if they called out for us. My phone was locked in Mr. Olson’s room, so I couldn’t get to it to call you guys. I’m so sorry,” she looked at Ajay again, whose eyes had never left her. The door slammed open again, and a small boy came running in shouting Ajay’s name. Bailey jumped, but Ajay bent down immediately and opened his arms, grabbing the boy and spinning him around in his arms.

“Mohit! Bud, I’m so sorry about last night, I got locked in here!” Ajay set his little brother down, who was still giggling from the hug. Mohit turned towards Bailey and widened his eyes.

“Ajay!” he stage-whispered to his older brother and pulled on his sleeve. “That’s the girl, right? The pretty one you—” Ajay gently pulled Mohit behind him and coughed over the boy’s question as he turned red.

“Ha! That’s enough of that, Mohit. We need to get home, yeah?” Ajay gave an awkward smile to Bailey, but relaxed when she returned with a shy giggle hidden behind her hand. Casey pulled on her hand.

“We gotta go, Mom and Dad are waiting outside. It was nice meeting you, though. I only wish it was under less weird circumstances,” Casey laughed and extended his hand, which Ajay eagerly shook. Despite being younger, Casey was slightly taller than Ajay and significantly beefier due to his dream of being on the football team, and Ajay couldn’t help but feel nervous at the thought that this kid could easily beat his ass given the chance. 

“I’ll see you on Monday for rehearsal, right Bailey?” Ajay smiled at Casey and looked past him to see Bailey gathering her stuff. She looked up and nodded back. The entire ride home with Mohit was spent talking about how fantastic the night had been.

* * *

“Erin, I swear to God, my soul _left_ my body. Like, yeah, he’s hot, but he’s also so _pretty!_ Did you know he has freckles? And he’s toned as hell. Like, I saw some abs, Erin! _Abs_! When is the show over again?” This was the tenth minute of Bailey lamenting about her perfect night with Ajay to her best friend, who eagerly sat on the bed and listened while squeezing a pillow. Bailey was also laying on the purple comforter with her arm thrown across her eyes as she thought about her crush.

“Well, Hell Week is in a month, and then opening night is that Friday, and then we have a Saturday matinee and an evening show. Sunday is when he’ll most likely lift his ban, since that’s what you’re really asking,” Erin gave a sly smile and poked Bailey’s stomach, who scoffed and lobbed a pillow at her. 

“There’s one thing that kind of pisses me off about this whole thing, though: Rory,” Bailey sat up and glanced toward her window where she could see Rory moving inside his room behind the curtain. Erin’s forehead creased.

“What does he have to do with this?”

“He was supposed to drive me home. He mentioned that he wanted to talk to me about something, too. I don’t get why he just left when I didn’t come out.”  
  


“Well, was anyone there with you guys, or was it just you three?”

“No, it was us and Dani— _Fuck!_ ” Bailey exclaimed and jumped up to the window. Erin followed her over and watched Bailey frantically slide the pane up and yell for Rory, who pulled back his curtain and did the same. 

“Bailey! I didn’t realize you got back. Where were you Friday night? After I left, you didn’t answer any of my texts,” he asked, giving a small wave to Erin who responded in kind.

“Ajay and I got locked into the auditorium and my phone was locked in Olson’s office. Why did you leave?” 

“Danielle told me that you were catching a ride with Ajay. Then we talked a little bit more, and now we’re going to Homecoming together!”

“I’m incredibly happy for you guys, but she’s a fucking snake. She lied to you, Rory, and she must’ve locked the doors on Ajay and me to get you to ask her out. God, she’s insane!” Rory furrowed his brows and huffed.

“Well, you don’t know that, Bailey. It could’ve been a misunderstanding. Why are you so quick to accuse her?” 

“She started getting in my face during casting because I got the role she wanted which, coincidentally, is also the role that has a kissing scene with you. Why shouldn’t I believe that it was her?” Rory responded by slamming his window shut on her.

* * *

After their fight, rehearsals had been tense whenever they had to interact. They didn’t let it affect their acting, but as soon as each scene with them ended, Bailey and Rory refused to talk to each other without someone else in the conversation. Rory had made it clear that the only way to get on speaking terms with him was to apologize, while Bailey made it clear that she refused to back down. Ajay could feel his show slipping through his fingers. After one of the more tense rehearsals, he called the two into Mr. Olson’s office. 

“Guys, I understand that this Danielle stuff between you has been strained, but the only way to get through this is to talk it out. You guys are best friends and have been forever. I refuse to let you walk through this door until it’s solved.” For effect, Ajay defiantly sat on the couch against the wall and watched the two actors stare each other down. 

“I don’t understand why you’re still defending her when it’s obvious that she’s the one who locked Ajay and me up,” Bailey started. 

“And I don’t understand why you’re jumping to conclusions about her when there’s nothing to indicate that it was actually her. It was all a misunderstanding.”

“How could it have been a misunderstanding, Rory? Please, enlighten me with your infinite wisdom.” Bailey scoffed and plopped down next to Ajay, who was starting to regret his plan. 

“She saw me leave and then saw you going backstage with Ajay, so she must’ve just thought that you were leaving with him. What were you doing, anyway? I thought there was a rule against cast dating?” Rory phrased it as a ‘gotcha’ moment and Bailey shot up from her seat, leaving Ajay lost and stumbling over his words to defend himself.

“What the hell does that have to do with anything?” she yelled.

“Because I was going to ask you to Homecoming!” The statement silenced everyone in the room. “But when Danielle told me that you were leaving with Ajay, I figured I had missed my chance; she asked me to the dance, I said yes, and then left without a second thought. You happy?” He snapped at both of them before turning on his heel and leaving the room. Ajay and Bailey stood stunned. 

“I’m going home,” Bailey cast the statement over her shoulder and left the room after Rory, leaving Ajay alone with his thoughts. 

* * *

Bailey had been trying to get Rory alone to talk to him for the rest of the week, but he refused to talk to her unless it was written in a script. She had texted and called, too, but with no response. The days until Homecoming passed in a blur of tickets, flowers, dresses, and cheesy flyers. Erin and Bailey had both decided to go stag, choosing to chill with each other rather than worrying about finding dates; there was only one boy Bailey wanted to ask her, anyway, but he had a family event scheduled for the same night. All she really wanted was Ajay’s arms wrapped around her, swaying to the music with lights blinking around them, but she was still determined to have fun. 

* * *

“Dude, you look dope. Can we go, though? The lines are going to be crazy and I don’t want to spend half my dancing time waiting,” Erin impatiently leaned against the doorway of the bathroom at Bailey’s house, tapping her toe of her stiletto against the creamy tile while her friend fussed over her appearance. 

“Fine, I’m ready.”

The dance was heavily decorated with lights and curtains, and the music blaring throughout the gym. Casey had immediately disappeared into the dense crowd with his date, Amber, so she and Erin attempted to find anyone else they knew. Bailey stood on her tippy-toes, trying to look above the crowd, and grabbed Erin’s hand when she spotted Skye’s bright hair next to some more tech kids and a few of her fellow actors. Rory and Danielle stood among the small group as well but pointedly ignored the new additions. Bailey grabbed a cup of punch and squared her shoulders; she was tired of the drama and wanted to put an end to it.

“I didn’t come over here to fight with you. In fact, I’m here to apologize. I shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions about Danielle, and I’m genuinely sorry that I blamed you and got so defensive. We good?” Bailey took a sip of her punch and waited for an answer. She didn’t want to embarrass him in front of his date and the rest of their friends, so she decidedly left his little crush out of what she mentioned. Rory gave a tentative smile and nodded.

“We’re good!” He shouted over the music and everyone in the group gave a cheer. Suddenly, Erin pulled Bailey’s arm to the dance floor to join the crowd all moving to the music. The night wore on and the two friends found themselves out of breath with feet aching more than once. Each time they sat down, they talked about how much fun they were having, how great the party was, and who they wished was there with them.

“I just wish Ajay were here, though. Erin, when we caught me that night, I fell _so hard_ for him. He’s just so sweet and kind, and when his little brother came in, oh, my heart melted and I—,” Bailey continued rambling until she saw Erin struggling to hold in a laugh. A voice sounded to her left, and she could feel her heart pound.

“I guess I’ll have to formally introduce you guys next time, then.” 

“Ajay!” She shot up out of her seat and whipped around, teal dress twirling around her thighs. He gave a shy smile and rubbed the back of his neck nervously. “I thought you had a family thing?”

“It ended earlier than usual, so I decided to swing by. I bought a ticket a few days ago, just in case I could come. I’m glad I did, you look incredible,” he gestured down to her dress and Bailey couldn’t help but feel insecure under his gaze. He looked at her under long eyelashes, something mysterious behind a fire in his eyes. Erin looked between the two. 

“Well, I’m going to get more snacks...feel free to stare into each others’ eyes a little bit more suggestively while I’m gone,” she nudged Bailey, who gave an awkward laugh and tore herself away from Ajay. 

“You wanna dance?” she looked up at him again with hope. She didn’t peg him as the dancing type, but she figured that since it was a special occasion, he’d make an exception for her. He made a face and she laughed, throwing her head back and holding onto his arm to steady herself. Ajay ate it up like his mother’s cooking; he had only been here for ten minutes but could feel himself getting intoxicated just from her smile. “C’mon, I’ll be careful with you.” Before he could protest, their fingers tangled together and he found himself being pulled among the other sweaty teenagers, all moving with barely any rhythm to the latest pop hits. 

Ajay looked around at all of the kids who he had never really met besides a wave in the hallway or a conversation shared with a mutual friend. Here, they were all the same; just people enjoying each other’s company for a night with music, laughter, and watered down punch that he could smell the alcohol in that some unruly teen had spiked it with. He looked at the girl in front of him, who was twirling around to the beat, not giving a damn about how she looked because she knew that everyone else was doing the same thing. He couldn’t help but dance along with her. Finally, he felt like everything was coming together.


	7. I Want to Kiss Your Lips

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> some fun hell week times and cute golden griddle content yo

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> bonjour!! I really loved this writing this chapter and the existential crises that came with it on what i should or shouldnt put in it. There are a few sentences that are kind of suggestive in here, and i just wanted to like clarify some shtuff, ya know. First off, i'm a teenager writing it, which is really why i included it, because i thought that the suggestion that he does have *suggestive emoji* thoughts would be a lil more realistic and kind of increase how hes so WHIPPED lmao so yeah im sorry if youre not into that, but it doesn't go into detail or anything so hopefully it doesnt make you click out also sorry for my bad grammar in this note, my fic is way more polished i promise lmao enjoy!!!!

On the first day of Hell Week, Ajay woke up with the sun. He had been too stressed to sleep, and when he finally could rest, he woke up at the crack of dawn. _Typical_ , he thought, rolling his eyes. He looked at his phone. Before the auditorium incident, he had never felt the need for one, but he changed his mind once he had been essentially cut off from everyone but Bailey. He unlocked the screen and found a text from her, dated just five minutes before.

PRINCESS: _Happy Hell Week!_ followed by a shit ton of emojis showed up on his screen. Despite his hatred of unnecessary emoticons, he found himself smiling and laughing at the screen. He typed out a response and immediately saw the three little dots.

_Why so many emojis?_

PRINCESS: _words cant contain my joy, bro, i gotta let it all out with pictures_

Ajay laughed and burrowed deeper into bed with his phone, never wanting to stop talking to the girl on the other end. He imagined what she looked like now, probably in short pajama shorts and a plain tee due to the warm autumn weather. He thought about what it would be like to be in bed next to her, legs tangled underneath the sheets while she played with his hair, the sun lighting up her features as she hummed a song. Neither of them would want to get up, they would just kiss and cuddle until they were too hungry to bear it. 

He imagined cooking with her: she’d sit on the counter and laugh at how messy he was while he baked for her. He’d steal kisses and use them as a way to get her equally covered in flour while she would giggle and press her lips to his jaw and forget all about whatever they had in the oven. When the pastries were done, she’d take one off the cooling rack and lead him to the couch, turning on a throwaway episode of a sitcom and they’d sit and talk for hours with long makeout sessions in between. The thought made his pajama pants feel tight.

The slight buzzing of his phone brought him back to the present but he couldn’t help but feel kind of guilty for thinking of her that way; he really didn’t have a clue if she was just nice or actually interested in him. He turned his attention back to the phone.

PRINCESS: _why u up so early tho_

_Couldn’t sleep._

PRINCESS: _me neither. Too bad we have school today, i wouldve liked to do something fun_

_Well maybe we can arrange that after rehearsal_

PRINCESS: _REALLY????????????????? My longest yeah boiiii ever, wanna head to the diner after we finish?_

_Sounds good, now we gotta go get ready or else we’ll both be late, I’ll see you soon_

PRINCESS: _see you soon, silver spoon_

Ajay shook his head at her weird texting phrases and got up to get ready. He felt more than excited for every day that she was in.

* * *

Their first dress rehearsal, complete with the set, costumes, and lighting, was a complete disaster. Half of the lighting cues just didn’t happen, the Peasants weren’t off-book despite having 10 lines spread out among 6 of them, and the prop cues were all late or missing. Ajay rubbed his face with his hands while the cast all sat in the rows of seats in front of him for notes. He hated to say it, but he honestly expected much worse. The first run-through was always pretty rough, and he’s glad for the time they have to fix everything. The actors and a few of the tech crew all looked up at him expectantly, nervously glancing at the multiple papers he had in his hands with the dozens of notes he had scribbled down.

“Well...it’s better than I expected. And I mean that honestly. But there are always ways to improve,” his eyes swept the small crowd in front of him. He briefly made eye contact with Bailey, who gave him an encouraging smile. With a little bit more confidence, he dove into every note he had. 

After every note had been given, everyone helped the tech crew clean up, making sure to keep a wedge under at least one door to the outside since they were staying really late. Bailey had been catching rides with Ajay lately and right before he went out to the parking lot, he went looking for her backstage. He asked Skye where she might be, but she shrugged and told him to check her dressing room. Ajay nodded and thanked her before finding the door and knocking politely. After no answer, he softly turned the handle and walked into the room. 

He took a deep breath and was met with her perfume, which he learned was Saltwater Breeze because it reminded her of the yearly visits to her grandparents’ home on the southern shore. Her makeup was still out on the vanity next to the numerous dirty makeup wipes. He walked over and picked up a piece of Kleenex with her lipstick blot on it. He realized that he probably seemed really creepy, going through her things like he was, but he couldn’t help it. He turned to the small divider in the corner of the room with her costume draped over it. He reached out to touch the tulle and rhinestones that gave it such volume and flair under the stage lights. 

“What the fuck are you doing?” Ajay jumped at the voice behind him and he turned around with wide eyes and a slightly open mouth. Bailey, who was in leggings and a sports bra, was staring him down with her eyes narrowed and arms crossed over her chest. He gave her a quick once-over before realizing how sleazy it was in this situation and started stuttering about how he thought the room was empty and he had knocked with no answer and that he was incredibly sorry. She stopped his rambling with a gesture.

“I went to the bathroom, and since no one answered when you knocked, you thought you could just enter and go through my things?” she asked.

“Well, I—uh, I just thought—Oh, shit,” he stopped trying to talk and ran a hand through his hair while using the other one to brush off his shirt as if trying to dust the awkwardness onto the thinly carpeted floor. 

“Listen, I understand the reasoning… I think. Just, let me clean up a little and then we can go, okay? We’re still on for the diner, right?” she tossed the casual question over her shoulder as she threw away her wipes and tissues and packed up her makeup bag, but it hit Ajay like a punch. _She still wants to hang out. Despite me being a complete idiot. It’s a miracle,_ his thoughts raced as he tried to answer the question coherently.

“Yeah, if you’re still up for it,” he tried to sound unbothered, but on the inside, he could feel his heart about to implode. He was still standing in the doorway watching her move about the space as if she owned it, and she didn’t respond to his statement until she was walking out the door. The doorframe was thinner than usual since the school had to be able to accommodate more rooms and doors in a smaller space, so she pressed against his chest as he turned to let her pass through.

“I’m always up for it, Ajay,” the look she gave him was indecipherable, and he held his breath as she passed in his space. As she walked in front of him, he couldn’t help but give a glance at how she perfectly filled out her leggings, probably the result of so many dance classes as she grew up. He tried to take his gaze off her body, but he found it completely impossible and shifted uncomfortably in his jeans as they walked to his car. Erin and Rory would drive the rest of the cast over after they finished cleaning up since Bailey could open the diner for everyone after closing; perks of her parents being the owners. 

Ajay thought about the girl next to him, tapping her thigh in time with the music and looking at the light streaks in the window as they drove to the diner, and thought about how truly dangerous she was to him. Then, he thought about how much he wanted it. 

* * *

The Golden Griddle was full of lively teenagers all laughing and joking under the soft fluorescent lighting of the restaurant. Bailey was running around the open kitchen, pouring the batter into waffle irons and skillets and refilling drink orders from her rowdy friends. Casey had just gotten off of football practice, so he caught a ride over with Erin (who Bailey thought he had his eye on since his and Amber’s messy breakup) and was helping his sister assuage the teens’ hunger with breakfast food. 

Ajay watched the twins work in harmony and couldn’t help but admire the perfect control they had over everything they were doing. They rushed around to tend to the timers and beeps from the various machines yet still found time to answer questions about the restaurant and crack jokes to each other and the rest of their friends in the booths. During a short period of downtime where everyone was busy eating, Ajay took his plate up to the high bar that overlooked the kitchen. She was eating on the kitchen side so that she could gauge everyone in the restaurant and their meals, and he sat to face her. 

“Need a refill?” she asked, setting her utensils down and holding out her hand to take his nearly empty cup of OJ. He shook his head and sat across from her.

“Just wanted to see how you were doing. You’re extremely good at cooking, this is one of the best waffles I’ve ever had!” Her eyes shone at the compliment.

“Thanks, uh, my parents taught me everything they know.”

“They want you to take over this place?” he asked, grabbing another chocolate chip waffle from the large plate of servings set up on the bar and drowning it in syrup. 

“Well, they want me to pursue my dreams of being an actress, but they know that it’s a tough business. They just wanted me to have the skills of management and cooking experience so I could pretty much get a job wherever I wanted in case gigs were slow and I needed the money. Plus, if anything happens, Casey and I could still take over the business,” she explained, shoveling her own food into her mouth and chewing between sentences. 

“Well, just so you know—” Ajay leaned in as if he was telling her a secret, “—you always have a place in whatever I’m directing.” She smiled as he straightened up. “With a proper audition, of course. I don’t play favorites.” 

She giggled and playfully hit his arm, causing him to smile back and stick his tongue out at her. 


	8. Fingers Pointed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Accusations, tears, and hard feelings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hellooo! I know i haven't updated in a while, but i do be at school doe so hopefully yall will forgive me. first off, I wanna say that this chapter is a little shorter since i have stuff COOKING up for next chapter, and this chapter is also directly inspired by "Twin to the rescue" by @AestheticTanuki. I loooooved their writing as well as the implication that the twin would def beat a bitch UP at the accusations, so def go and read their stuff! Theyre so talented and I love reading their writing. anywhoooooooo please go and check up on yourself if you've been reading stuff for a while, and i hope you enjoy this!!!!

The next day at rehearsal, Jordan visited. She smiled at Bailey and sat in the audience to watch next to Ajay. Her foot was healing nicely and she was walking on her own two feet again. After Act I, everyone sat on the stage, chests heaving from the heat of the lights and the quick changes they had to do backstage. Ajay delivered his notes and they delved into Act II. Focus was a necessity, so no one dawdled in transitions or cues. Act II ended, and Ajay gave the cast a small smile, which was the equivalent of heavy applause from their hardass director. After the notes, Ajay turned to Jordan.

“Anything to add?”

She shook her head. “It was fantastic. Bailey, you’re incredible as Princess. You really brought this show to life.” Bailey started tearing up, but any gratitude she could have given was cut off by Danielle’s scoff.

“Yeah, funny how she almost had to kill you to do it,” Danielle raised an eyebrow at Jordan as everyone’s eyes turned to her. “It’s true. Bailey gave you the box with wheels to stand on. I bet she knew you would roll and fall.” Everyone turned back to Bailey for comment, but she just stared open-mouthed at Danielle. Trevor, head of lighting, piped up from his booth.

“It is kind of suspicious, isn’t it?” Bailey stood up and shakily pointed at Danielle. 

“You’re the one who told me to find the box.”

“Well yeah, but you’re the one who got the wheeled box,” she shot back. Mr. Olson rose from his chair in the side seating section of the auditorium. 

“Bailey, this is a very serious matter,” he said, cautiously regarding his students to avoid creating a panic.

“What do you have to say for yourself, Bailey? I hate that this is happening, but I take the safety of my actors very seriously. I can’t dismiss this,” Ajay stood slowly and gave an apologetic look to Bailey. Jordan looked confused and opened her mouth to speak, but Skye cut her off.

“Are you guys seriously considering this? Bailey, I’m sorry, I don’t know you very well, but I don’t think anyone here is really capable of sabotage. Shame on all of you for really thinking this!” it was the most Bailey had ever heard from Skye, and at the act of support, she let her tears flow freely and started gathering her stuff.

“I’m just going to ride home with Casey and Lorenzo. Feel free to debate my innocence without me,” she sounded enraged, which was a stark contrast with how hard she was crying over the swift accusations of her supposed friends. Ajay watched her go, crestfallen at her tears but unsure of how to proceed. The slam of the door was deafening as she left the auditorium. 

“She seems pretty guilty to me,” Danielle said with a smug look.

“Shut the fuck up, Danielle,” Skye and Jordan spoke simultaneously. Ajay just sat heavily and put his head in his hands.

* * *

A half-hour after Bailey left in tears, everyone was quietly packing up, still not sure what to make of what happened. A door slammed and everyone’s head snapped up to see if it was Bailey; what they got was her very angry twin.

“What the fuck is wrong with you people?” Casey stomped in and crossed his arms, eyeing the kids who were fearfully stepping back. Mr. Olson had already gone home, so it was just fifteen theatre kids versus a very beefy, very angry football player.

Casey seemed to search the auditorium until his eyes landed on Ajay. He marched up to the director and jabbed a finger in his face. 

“I’m most disappointed in you.” Ajay stuttered, trying to defend himself, but Casey put up a hand to silence him. “She loved this show and treasured your friendship, but now that she knows you’d turn on her in a second over a bullshit accusation, she isn’t sure who she can trust beside Skye. Everyone in here can fuck right off if you all really think that my sister, who opened up a goddamn restaurant for you and laughed with you and fucking cooked for you, actually willingly hurt someone just to get a part in a play.” He had begun addressing everyone halfway through his speech but turned back to Ajay for a final blow. “Don’t come near my sister again until you’ve figured your shit out, asshole.”

He turned and stomped out ut stopped at seeing Danielle by the door looking like she would rather be anywhere else. Casey pushed past her and opened the door.

“I hope you’re happy,” he said before finally walking outside and letting the door slam. Everyone looked to Ajay, who was standing in stunned silence. Once he realized all eyes were on him, he quickly tried to compose himself and swept his eyes across the auditorium. He began to make an announcement, but Danielle spoke over him.

“I did it.”

“What?” All eyes landed on her as Ajay shifted his gaze in surprise.

“I hid the right box and told Bailey to get the wrong one. I wanted to be the princess and blame her if anything went wrong,” Danielle rushed out an explanation as Ajay’s blood boiled. _My idiocracy completely fucked up my friendship with Bailey, and Danielle admitted to framing Bailey as if this were some major blockbuster and not some stupid high school play,_ he thought. “I just wanted to get closer to Rory, Ajay please don’t—” she tried to justify herself, but Ajay could see nothing but red.

“You’re out.” 

“Ajay, you can’t get rid of me three days before opening night—”

“Someone could’ve fucking died because of you, Danielle! Bailey’s at home hating herself because of you, Danielle! I’m not rewarding you with the glory of being onstage when nearly every problem we have is because of you and your stupid decisions. Get the fuck out. You’re no longer a part of any production I direct,” Ajay snapped and crossed the auditorium in a few seconds to open the door and usher her outside. He closed the door on her and leaned his back against it, slowly sliding down until he sat on the floor. He put his head his hands and started to sob at the stress. 

Erin looked at him and quickly took control of the cast and crew. “I think we’re all good for today, guys. Let’s head on home.” She sank to her knees next to Ajay and hugged him, causing his cries to quiet as he buried his head into her shoulder. 

“I fucked up, Erin,” Ajay whispered. She shushed him gently and rubbed his back to comfort him. 

“I know, babe. We all did,” she whispered back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd also like to shout out @rulesofthebeneath, who is actually the person who specifically got me into hss fics, and is an absolutely INCREDIBLE writer. Go and check them out on tumblr and ao3, plus they're so sweet!!!! alrighty tank u for ur time


	9. Cinnamon Sorries

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A cute apology dinner feat. you guessed it, more pining!!! We love lovestruck teens

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HIIIII so yeah, this be the next chapter....i hope you guys like it!!!! I really just wanted a short chapter of simple forgiveness, so i didnt spend toooo much time on this, but the next chapter is gonna be way longer with a little bit of steam *winky face*

The next day at school, Bailey tried avoiding all of her friends as much as possible. She hated running from her problems, but some things genuinely needed time. Her eyes puffy and her under-eye bags dark, she traveled from class to class until it was finally time for rehearsal. She used to live for those; now it was her biggest source of anxiety as she walked into the auditorium and set her stuff down. The lights were off. She used her phone as a flashlight and walked along the aisle, but tripped in the low lighting. Bailey let out a short shriek but gasped when she felt someone grab her waist. The person pulled her up before speaking quietly into her ear. 

“You okay?” he asked. His voice was slightly husky, and despite how awful he was to her the day before, Bailey couldn’t help but imagine him speaking gin another context. She released a breath she didn’t realize she was holding and nodded. 

“Yes, Ajay, thanks,” she said, still breathless. “What are you doing here in a dark auditorium? Rehearsal is supposed to start.” Ajay sheepishly smiled at her and gestured to someone on stage. 

“It was supposed to be more of a surprise, but…” The lights flipped on and revealed the empty stage and house. “I have to take you somewhere. I can’t tell you where, but you should come.” Bailey eyed him suspiciously, and Ajay couldn’t help but think of how much she looked like her brother. 

“Am I going to be accused of the death of Diana now, too?” she asked, still barely breathing from Ajay’s hands still around her waist. Ajay smiled and let go of her. They both tried to hide their disappointment, but Ajay took her hand and led her to the door that opened to the student parking lot. They walked to his car and began an awkwardly silent ride to Ajay’s mystery location. 

After just a few turns, Bailey knew where they were headed. 

“Why are we going to the diner?” she asked. Ajay glanced at her but kept his attention on the road while he spoke.

“Listen, Bailey. I...was a dick. I completely ignored our friendship for a baseless accusation. And I’m not just saying this because Casey yelled at me and Danielle confessed...I’m saying it because I care for you, and our…” he struggled to find the right word. “...friendship is one of the most important things to me. I’m so sorry.”

Bailey sat in shock and tried to search for a response. Ajay quietly drove, and she turned to him after a few minutes. 

“Casey yelled at you?” was all she asked. Ajay laughed and nodded.

“Called me an asshole in front of the whole cast. I deserved it,” he responded and cast another glance over at her. The sun had begun to set outside and the rays were lighting up Bailey’s face as she looked out the window. He thought she was beautiful.

“You did. But...I know where your head was at, and I understand your reaction. I appreciate you apologizing. You mean a lot to me, too,” she said, and his grip on the wheel tightened. _You mean a lot to me. Not our friendship, but me, as a person,_ he thought, his thoughts racing a mile a minute. _Maybe...I do have a chance._

His thought process was interrupted at their arrival at the Golden Griddle. It was closed early because Aajy called Casey and told the twin about his plans to apologize to Bailey. He may have also rambled about how fantastic Bailey was and how Ajay planned to ask her out once the play was over, but that was a conversation for another time. Casey opened up the diner for the theatre kids, who planned to cook for bailey and treat her to an apology meal. 

Ajay took Bailey’s hand and led her inside to her favorite booth in the back corner, rightfully nicknamed “Bailey’s Booth” with a plaque on the wall. He hated letting go of her hand, but he walked back to the kitchen to make some chocolate chip waffles, her favorite. Everyone else sat around her and apologized in turn for their accusations. She forgave everyone just as the waffles were done. Ajay delivered them to her table and anxiously watched as she took a bite. He had gone to her parents to learn how to cook them, so he prayed that he had gotten the recipe right. She gave a close-lipped smile that got wider as she chewed. 

“Ajay, this is amazing! Did you add cinnamon?” she asked, holding he rest down and washing it all down with apple juice. He sheepishly nodded and gave a bashful smile. “I’ll have to tell Mom to add it to the recipe or one of the specials, I think it will bring in a whole new wave of customers.” Bailey looked at Ajay, whose blush spread to his neck at such high praise. He locked eyes with Erin, who raised her eyebrows and winked at him. The rowdy teens spent the rest of the evening laughing with Bailey as Ajay watched and still felt her warm body in his arms.


	10. Not So Guilty Conscience

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A dressing room scene with a half-naked girl and a very interested boy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello!! so imma get straight to it, this chapter does have a little bit of nsfw stuff in it, so if youre not too into that, then feel free to skip it!! i hope you guys enjoy it!!

Rehearsals resumed the next day, but a problem made itself evident as Danielle wasn’t there and they were short a Witch. Skye hesitated but raised her hand. 

“I know Danielle’s lines, I can do it,” she offered, and Ajay sighed with relief as Bailey excitedly clapped. 

“You’re gonna be great, Skye!” she said, and Skye gave a bashful smile. With the dilemma figured out, everyone dispersed to get into their costumes and set up the stage. After a few minutes of going over each element, he realized that he’d never gotten to go over his notes from the last rehearsal with Bailey. He took his clipboard and walked to her dressing room, dodging stressed techs and actors dressed in half modern, half medieval clothing on the way there. He gave a knock at the door with no answer, so he patiently waited outside the door for her to come out. Erin paused as she walked by him and gestured to the room.

“She’s in there, but probably listening to music while she does her makeup. Go ahead in,” Erin said before hurrying off. Ajay shrugged and turned the handle, walking in while looking down at the clipboard. Bailey shrieked, and he quickly looked up and stuttered at the fact that she was only wearing a bra and underwear.

“What is with you and dressing rooms?” she yelled, reaching for her costume to cover up. 

“I—uh...oh my god, I’m so sorry, I—” he stumbled, quickly closing the door behind him and keeping them both in the room, the image burned into his mind. He briefly thought about how perfect she looked; freckles and moles dotted her body, and he ached to kiss each one. She had scars on her right thigh and directly above the top of her pink underwear. He resisted the urge to run his fingers across them. He wanted to put his hands around her waist and—

“It’s not polite to stare,” she said, lowering her costume to reveal more of herself. “You’ve already seen me, I don't really see a point in—” Ajay took two large steps over to her, gently took her face in his hands, and pressed a soft kiss to her lips. She leaned forward into him and grabbed his wrists. He broke off for air and looked into her eyes; he thought they were wide and blue and clear and _perfect_. 

“I’m sorry, I don’t know what came over me—” he started to take a step back, but Bailey pulled him back in and placed his hands on her bare waist. 

“Kiss me again, Ajay,” she breathed out, and his name on her tongue drove Ajay wild. Their lips met again with fire behind each of their movements. Ajay couldn’t get enough of Bailey and he licked her bottom lip for more access. She granted it and moaned while pulling his body closer to hers. Their chests moved together and Ajay moved his hands lower to cup her ass. She moaned louder and pulled away slightly but kept her fervent kisses on his neck and collarbone as he kneaded her soft skin over her underwear. She continued sucking on his neck just below his collar and spoke between each hickey.

“We need...to get to...rehearsal,” she whispered and he hummed in response. She gently took his hands from her ass and placed them against his chest, but continued to hold them. “People might get suspicious.”

“I’ll just tell them we were going over notes for your performance,” he said before picking a spot on her clavicle and sucking it to bruise the skin. She sighed happily and put her hand on the back of his neck. 

“What even was that, Ajay?” she asked, and he raised his head up to look at her.

“I’ve been trying so hard to keep myself from doing that since I saw you at auditions,” he admitted. 

“That was months ago!”

“Exactly,” he laughed quietly. “I tried to be professional but…” he put his hand under her chin. “...you’re just so beautiful.” 

Bailey’s phone buzzed on the vanity, snapping both of them back to reality. She painfully detached herself from her to check her device, only to find six messages from Erin. The most recent was just a bunch of kissy and winky emojis. 

“Looks like Erin is onto us,” Bailey sighed looked at her reflection.

“Looks like she’ll get a quick confirmation, then,” Ajay gave a teasing smile and gestured to the dark hickey quickly forming on her collarbone. Bailey quickly enacted her revenge with a swift movement of her hand across the front of his pants, turning his amused laughter into a loud moan. 

“Shh, don’t want anyone to hear,” she said, giggling at his playful glare. “You can stay in here to...clean up.” He walked over to the vanity with her and stood behind her to survey his appearance. His hair was a complete mess and his button-down was partially undone, revealing large purple bruises forming across his neck. Ajay hastily buttoned it and smoothed down his hair. He glanced back at Bailey, who had gone to the corner to retrieve and put on her dress, and helped her step into her costume. His hands were warm on her back and she thought about other things they could do. All too soon, her dress was on and his hands returned to his sides. She gestured to the door. 

“You should go ahead and leave, I don’t want people to start questioning things,” she said. It amazed her how sober she was after making out a guy she’s had a crush on since the start of the school year. “Plus, I need to hide this.” She pointed to the hickey that was easily visible with the low-cut neckline of her costume. He chuckled and nodded, but stooped down to give her a small kiss before he left. She closed the door behind him and leaned against it as the 10 minutes ran through her head. After she confirmed that she wasn’t dreaming, she hid Ajay’s marks and texted Erin.

_I’ll be right out._

* * *

Ajay walked out and joined Erin in the audience, who raised an eyebrow as he sat down next to her. 

“Did you just get back from a sauna?” she asked, knowing exactly what he had been up to. His eyes widened and he tripped over his words as he tried to explain himself. “You’re all red and sweaty.”

“It was...hot in the dressing rooms.”

“And _what_ were you doing in the dressing rooms?” Erin enjoyed watching him squirm at her implication. 

“Going over notes for her performance. Speaking of, shouldn’t you be preparing for yours?” he was visibly and uncomfortable and tried to regain composure by changing the subject, and Erin felt willing to let him off easy. 

“Fine, but I’d fix my collar if I were you,” she said, glancing down at where some of his bruises peeked out over his shirt. His hand flew to his neck to hide them as he put his blazer on. She sent a loud laugh in his direction as she set up the stage for the opening scene. After a few minutes, Bailey walked out in full costume and sent a smile towards Ajay before beginning the scene. The run-through went well with limited complications, and Skye proved to be a fantastic Witch. Instead of having an intermission, the actors did quick changes and transitions to maximize the time they had for notes, and Ajay was impressed at the professionalism of his cast. When the ending notes swelled and the actors took their final bows to an empty auditorium, he could feel his heart glow with pride at how great the show was. With their first official show the next night, his pride was quickly replaced with determination to make this the best show he’s ever directed; with Bailey, he knew it was possible. 

“That was great! I have very few notes, so we can just go over and redo parts that we need to,” he said as his cast gathered around to listen before he sent them back on stage to rehearse more.

Rehearsal ended around ten with tired teenagers and a near-perfect show. Ajay finally happy with the performance, he dismissed everyone to clean up and prepare for the stress of the next evening. He sat heavily in one of the auditorium seats and went through his notes to make sure he didn’t miss anything but heard the seat next to him creak with the weight of someone throwing herself into it. 

“You better not break that seat, Erin,” Ajay spoke without looking up at the girl next to him, who sighed at her failed scare tactic. 

“Dammit, how’d you know it was me? Wait, never mind, I don’t care. What’s going on with you and Bailey?”

Ajay was prepared for her questions this time, and he felt that it was easier to answer when his mind wasn’t occupied by the feeling of the girl of his dreams’ half-naked body in his hands.

“I already told you: nothing but notes on her performance.”

“She’s going to tell me anyway, so I might as well know now.”

“If you know she’s going to tell you the boring details of how I wanted her to improve, then why not ask her?” 

“Because I know exactly what happened but I want you to tell me the specifics. Please?” Erin opened her eyes wide and gave him a pleading look. Ajay sighed and set his clipboard down in his lap. He lowered his voice and told her every detail after making her swear to secrecy. He relived every moment as Erin listened intently to each sigh, word, and action Ajay told her.


	11. Jealous Intentions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's performance night!!!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Helllllloooooo!!! So I was faced with the choice of making this only a lil NSFW or fully NSFW, both with their own pros and cons. These are underage teenagers, and I understand about not sexualizing them when so much of our society does, but on the other hand, I AM A TEENAGER?? and we def do some of this stuff, and I don't want to sugarcoat it. However, I do know that a lot of people in this fandom are full grown adults and would be made uncomfy by that stuff so I'll probs make one shots with it so that it's easier to skip through. I want y'all to like my stuff, so hopefully you do!💖💖

Bailey’s phone was blowing up as soon as she texted Erin that she had gotten home. Her friend basically screamed through the screen and Bailey had trouble keeping up with the amount of messages coming up in such a short amount of time. 

KING: _YOU MADE OUT_

KING: _WITH OUR FUCKING_

KING: _DIRECTOR??????????????????????????????????????????????_

Bailey made a typical ‘oh shit’ expression to no one in particular and hurried to respond.

_who told u that???_

KING: _uh, aforementioned director. After much pestering, might I add, so appreciate my persistence. Now. i want every deet before i die of not knowing_

_Damn drama king, fine. Open my snaps in a few minutes_

KING: _gotcha_

Bailey proceeded to explain everything in four minute-long Snapchat videos before finally sending a picture saying she was finished. Erin then proceeded to freak out in three minute-long Snapchat videos over the crazy night that Bailey had. She finished them off before asking Bailey if they were going to actually date.

Bailey looked up from her phone in confusion. She hadn’t considered it before and they had never talked about it, so she was genuinely questioning whether tonight had meant anything. _He could have just liked me because I was half-naked. Would he do that?_ She thought, constricting walls of her own insecurity closing in on her. She sent a short text to Erin bidding her a good night and set her phone face down. She decided that she needed sleep, but could only dream of her director.

* * *

The next day was show day and everyone was feeling it; classes were filled with nervous knee shaking, anxious tapping, and constant glances at the clock so that they could get to the auditorium to set up for a packed house. When the time finally came, each cast member practically ran backstage to get sets, hair, makeup, lights, and costumes ready for their opening night. As the minutes ticked away to when people started arriving, Bailey stayed in her dressing room. She had been anxiously fixing her hair as a way to distract herself from the stress she had been facing lately with the show and her little incident with Ajay. She heard a knock at the door and yelled for the person on the other side to come in. She glanced up and saw Ajay standing in awe. 

“What’s wrong?” she asked, taking in the wild panic showing in his eyes.

“You look incredible,” Ajay said sounding slightly choked up. He had seen her in her costume, but her hair and makeup had never been done for dress rehearsal. She truly looked like a princess. “Uh—anyway, we’re about to start.”

She nodded and rose from her vanity stool with a last glance in the mirror before walking with Ajay to the back wings of the stage. She waited for her cue, and with a quick deep breath and a flourish of her arm, walked out on the stage to start the show.

* * *

Ajay felt his heart pound as he saw the final scene with Rory and Bailey, also dubbed ‘the kissing scene’ by most of the actors due to the locking of lips to be done by the main actors. He knew it was coming, he had read the script, and yet he had never truly seen it happen. One of the perks of being a director was that he could yell to stop a scene pretty much whenever he wanted, and he had definitely abused that power by always stopping the two stars just as they leaned into each other. He knew it wasn’t real, but Rory and Bailey were just such good actors that Ajay’s blood boiled anyway at the chemistry between them. _They’re just acting_ , he repeated like a mantra in his head, but he still couldn’t tear a glare away as they finally kissed after what seemed like ages of them turning their heads and moving toward each other. Ajay had never been a jealous person, but when it came to Bailey, he couldn’t stand it.

He broke from his rage with the sound of applause from the audience, and his heart swelled as each person gave those on stage a standing ovation at their performance. He could spot his and Bailey’s parents in the crowd, as well as Casey and most of the students from the football team. Ajay swore he could see a few of them crying, and he smiled to himself at the thought that they were so moved by his show. The clapping continued for several minutes before it was finally time for everyone to head home, so each actor walked back to their respective dressing rooms to change out of their costumes and help the tech crew get things back in the right place for the Saturday matinee. Ajay spotted Bailey laughing at something Rory said, and his face twisted up at the thought of them together. After Rory left to go change, Bailey noticed Ajay standing with an angry look on his face by her door. She furrowed her brows at him in confusion and opened her mouth to ask him about it, but he looked up and down the hallway to make sure they were alone before roughly grabbing her arm and pulling her into her dressing room. He slammed the door behind them and turned her around to pin her against the door. Her low-cut costume gave him a full view to her shoulders and neck, and he took advantage of the access to begin sucking on her neck and trying to elicit the most inappropriate sounds from her. His hands roamed her body and he touched and squeezed whatever he could over her costume.

“Ajay, what the _fuck?_ ” Bailey managed to breathe out, and he kissed up her neck to her ear.

“I know that nothing is going on between you and Rory, but I really can’t stand to see you get kissed by anyone else, Bailey,” he talked low and raspy, and she whimpered at how perfect her name sounded in his voice. “I want you to be all mine, and now he gets to kiss you two more times tomorrow.” Ajay pulled away with his body still on hers and gave a playful pout to make her laugh.

“I guess I’ll just have to make up for it, then,” Bailey purred and took advantage of his distracted state to flip their positions and put him against the door. She started unbuttoning his shirt to reveal a plain white tee thinly veiling the muscles that she knew were there. Impatiently, she grabbed the hem of the shirt and pulled it up to reveal a toned abdomen. She traced a finger down it and watched as he tensed with how low her hand was traveling. 

“Bailey, you don’t have to—” he started, but she silenced him with the unzipping of his zipper. 

“I know,” she sank to her knees and looked up at him, and he almost came at the sight of her innocently blinking her eyes as she undid his pants. “I’ve been thinking about this for a while.”

“How long?”

“Well, when we got locked in the auditorium...let’s just say my mind was definitely wandering because of how fucking hot you look while you stretch."

Ajay moaned at her words and threw his head back. Time was lost to him and all he could think and feel was Bailey.

* * *

The next day was their matinee, which went perfect for the many younger kids in the audience. The evening show was another stressful night since it was their final night of performing. No one wanted it to end, and Ajay could tell it was going to be an emotional curtain call as he saw the tears streaming down Bailey's face during her kissing scene with Rory. As he watched from the auditorium seat, Ajay ached to clean her tears and kiss her, but he knew to contain himself. He stood with the audience during the ovation, but Bailey beckoned him up from her place on the stage. When he humbly laughed and shook his head, she rolled her eyes and leaned down to offer her hand. He was pushed by his little brother from the seat next to him, so Ajay joined his actors on stage for the final bows. Bailey took his hand and squeezed, and in that moment, he knew that he belonged with her. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also don't be mean to me about possible grammar mistakes or how kind of rushed this is, I usually write at like 2 am on the weekends to get chapters out quickly so yeah😂💖


	12. Sleep Deprived Sentiments

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A cast party and a kitchen moment

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hiyaaaaaa so i've had this done for a while but i just couldn't find the time to type it since i do be in school doe so pls forgive me!! also i just played the new chapter for book three and im so stressed about whats gonna happen omg. lemme know what you guys think!!!

After every audience member left, each actor and techie piled into the oldest students’ cars and drove over to the Golden Griddle for a cast party. Ajay barely hid his disappointment at not being alone with Bailey, but quickly forgot about it when he saw that she was wearing leggings and a tank top for the party. The weather was uncharacteristically warm for this time of year, and Ajay tried to push his thoughts out of his mind as he drove. When they arrived, everyone in the car piled out to enjoy the restaurant. Ajay stared at Bailey and thought of the marks he had left on her, thinly veiled with her foundation and concealer. She caught him staring and gave him a subtle wink as they walked in together and were bombarded with congratulations from everyone. 

The party wore on with different people leaving or being picked up until it was just Ajay, Skye, Rory, Bailey, and Erin left in the restaurant. They sat in Bailey’s Booth, and Ajay was sidled up closer than normal to Bailey due to the small size of the table. Their thighs pressed together under the table and Ajay struggled to contain his smile at their proximity. He took a sip of his drink just as Bailey reached under the table to squeeze his leg, sending him into a coughing fit from his shock. Conversation stopped and bailey gave Ajay some firm pats on the back to help him recover. Erin shot a look towards her that seemed to ask “What did you do?” Bailey shrugged and raised her eyebrows before returning her attention to Ajay, who was finally beginning to regain his composure.

“Sorry for the scare everyone, I’m all good,” he choked out. “Although it is getting late, wanna head out?” He glanced around the table and nodded at everyone’s confirmation. Bailey pouted and spoke up.

“Or...we could continue the party at my house.” Everyone looked at Bailey and her mischievous smile. 

“Hell yeah!” Erin exclaimed, prompting similar excitement from the teens around the table. Skye rode over with Rory, Erin rode by herself, and Bailey hopped in the passenger seat of Ajay’s sports car. He gave her a glance as she fastened her seatbelt. For someone who’s spent intimate time with the beautiful girl next to him, he sure was awkward with her. She caught him staring and offered a small smile. 

“What are you looking at?” Bailey asked, heart beating faster with every second he gazed at her. Without another word, Ajay leaned forward and kissed her before he had time to back out. Her lips were soft and tasted vaguely of vanilla from her chapstick and syrup from the waffles; he wanted the taste to last forever. They pulled apart at the sound of shouting and someone banging on the hood of his car. 

“What the—?” Ajay looked out his windshield to see Skye uncharacteristically whooping and pounding her fist on his car while Erin and Rory danced around in the empty lot. They saw the kiss, and Bailey turned red as she watched her friends act like idiots. She rolled down her window and leaned out.

“Are we leaving or what?” She yelled out. Her friends laughed and Erin even almost keeled over. Bailey sat back in her seat and rolled the window up, still laughing. She looked at Ajay and took his hand. He shifted his eyes over to hers, staring deep into them and recognizing the happiness behind them. He gave her a bright smile before looking forward and beginning the drive over to Bailey’s.

* * *

They gathered in the living room and laid out on the large couch and loveseat to watch a movie. They chose _Scream_ and Bailey knew it was because her guests just wanted her to have an excuse to hug on Ajay during the scary parts. Ajay seemed to realize it too, but he was significantly less cool about it. When Bailey’s mom offered blankets for the gang, he stumbled over his words in an attempt to thank her. He and Bailey sat on the loveseat together, but he sat with his feet firmly on the ground and started to wring his hands. Bailey took his chin in one hand and turned his face towards hers. In her other hand, she gently pulled his wrist and intertwined their fingers. He relaxed into her touch as his eyes softened at the sight of her.

“You ready for the movie, dork?” she whispered and giggled as his face broke into a smile. He nodded and gave her a look of surprise as she placed his arm around her shoulders and nestled her head into the crook of his neck. She fit perfectly and his face melted into one of pure contentment as he turned his attention back to the movie.

* * *

The movie was over, but everyone’s eyelids drooped and they could barely move, nonetheless drive home. Bailey’s mom made an executive decision to break out some of their family sleeping bags and lay them out on the floor for everyone before calling parents to explain where their kids would be staying. Bailey’s father and brother brought out some of their old pajama shorts and bottoms for the boys while Bailey shared some of her own clothes for the girls. They all left the rooms they used to change at the same time for a group reveal, and Bailey’s eyes widened at the sight of Ajay in a slightly too tight t-shirt and low waisted pajama bottoms. He shyly smiled at her as he eyed her short shorts, revealing the legs he so desperately wanted to be wrapped around his—

“You ready for bed?” she could see his gaze and the thoughts behind it and stopped him before he made out with her right then and there in front of everyone. He gave a tight-lipped smile and strategically moved his hands to cover his bottoms. They each laid down in the different colors of sleeping bags and prepared for some rest. Ajay and Bailey were positioned a few feet apart, but the distance felt like miles to both of them. Ajay closed his eyes to try and sleep, but he knew that with her so close, it would be difficult. He kept his eyes closed when he heard her get up and go to the kitchen, but after a few minutes of her moving around the kitchen, he opened them and walked in after her. 

She opened the fridge to retrieve a water bottle. He watched her from the archway between the living room and the kitchen and thought of how beautiful she was in the soft glow of the fridge. He pushed off the frame he was leaning against and walked behind her to wrap his arms around her waist and nuzzled his face into her neck. She quietly hummed and leaned into his body. 

“I couldn’t sleep,” she spoke low. 

“Neither could I,” he planted a small kiss on the back of her neck and she shuddered. “You cold?” Ajay hugged her closer when he saw her smile. 

“Maybe,” she turned her head slightly and kissed him, prompting him to turn her around so she was facing and kissed her properly. The fire between them grew brighter and hotter as their kisses became more desperate. Eventually, his hands, previously on her waist, drifted lower as he grabbed her legs and lifted her up to wrap her legs around him. 

“Interestingly, I was thinking about this earlier,” he whispered, and Bailey smiled trying to hold in a laugh.

“Really? Because you looked like you were about to throw up whenever my mom asked you anything,” Bailey taunted and kissed his cheek to hide her smile at his stink eye. 

“I just wanted to impress her.”

“And getting her daughter extremely turned on in her kitchen while she sleeps a few rooms down is definitely the right way to do it,” Bailey teased, landing a few more kisses to his jaw while he panicked about what they were really doing. 

“Fuck,” he breathed out, and Bailey stilled her romantic attack on the lower half of his face. He looked at her with his head cocked and a blush on his cheeks, hair slightly out of place from laying down in his sleeping bag. She pulled his face into hers until their lips met. Ajay let out a quiet moan and moved his hands from her thighs to her ass, which he gratefully observed was very exposed due to how short her bottoms were. They stood in the dark kitchen with the only lighting from the moon through the window for what seemed like hours. Ajay basked in her body heat and the extra warmth her lips brought to him as the two teenagers desperately grabbed at each other. Finally, Bailey pulled back. 

“We should sleep, right?” she whispered, out of breath. Her lips were red and swollen, and Ajay nodded while thinking of how perfect she looked in this state. He slowly let her go and continued to hold her as she set her feet gently on the ground. “Can I sleep in your sleeping bag?” He smiled and looked towards the living room before turning back to her. 

“Of course, let me just grab my pillow and we can switch—” he started to walk back to give her his portable bed, but she lightly tugged on his arm to get him to stay. 

“I want to _share_ a sleeping bag with you, Ajay,” she gave another teasing smile at his cluelessness and led him over to where they were sleeping, being careful not to wake her friends. He climbed in first before she slid in and nestled herself against his body. She fit perfectly once again and he threw his arm around her to pull her even closer to him. She gave a contented sigh at his light kisses on the back of her neck and down to her shoulders. Before they both could fall asleep, Bailey turned her head to him. 

“I have a question,” she whispered. He opened his eyes and looked at her with an inquisitive and slightly worried look. 

“Yes?” 

“When’d you get muscles?” she couldn’t find it in her sleep-deprived state to filter her words, and he snorted at her question. 

“To be able to make out with a beautiful girl easier,” he joked and kissed her nose.

“No, I’m being serious, dummy,” she smiled at his soft action. He hugged her closer and whispered an explanation.

“I used to be crazy skinny, and kids would tease me about it, so I started working out a little. I run in the mornings on the weekends; maybe you should come with me sometime.” Bailey smiled and thought about what Ajay would look like on his runs. She imagined a tight t-shirt and short track shorts, revealing toned legs—or maybe he’d be shirtless to show off his build and broad shoulders. She bit her lip at the thought of his back and muscles flexing in front of her and how nice his ass would look in tight shorts. He nudged her slightly and broke her from thoughts. “Or not, if running isn’t your thing.”

“It most definitely can be,” she responded, and he chuckled at her suggestive tone. 

“You’re imagining me shirtless, aren’t you?”

“You know me so well.”

They laughed and kissed until their breathing evened out and they fell into a deep sleep full of dreams about each other.


	13. Intrusive Thoughts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> fun times feat. shed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi! this is mostly from Ajay's perspective because we love a lovesick boi who also is very attracted to this girl. I also kind of messed with the timeline and i don't even know when this fic is gonna actually end so i guess stick around to find out when i actually finish it lmao i hope you like it!!

The days until winter break passed slowly and were filled with quick glances and pining towards Bailey in the hallways at school. He couldn’t get their perfect night out of his mind, and he found himself aching for more. They were stuck in an odd limbo of being friends but more, and Ajay imagined what it would be like to call her his girlfriend for the whole world to hear. As he sat in his trig class, he shook the thought away.

_ She probably just wanted some fun _ , he thought. He didn’t believe it, not deep down, but he was scared of the other possible reasons: she changed her mind, or she never really liked him in the first place. Since the play ended, the only time they really talked was over text and during lunch in a group with everyone who worked on the play, which was way too public for things he wished to do with her. No matter how hard he tried, his thoughts always meandered back to her. Her smile as she bowed onstage, the curves of her body in his hands as they made out in her kitchen, her determined gaze piercing his as she sank to her knees for him in the dressing room. His mind always found a way to think about her in different contexts, each more inappropriate than the last. He shifted in his chair, catching Rory’s attention next to him. 

“You good?” He leaned over and whispered to avoid the teacher’s attention. Ajay gave a tight-lipped nod to Rory, who lowered his eyebrows in suspicion but still let the question drop. 

Pretty soon, the lunch period of the last day before the break rolled around. The gang from the play all sat around laughing at their table before Rory stood up to announce something. The chatter died down and he gave a dramatic flourish of his arms. 

“I’m running for president!” Everyone blinked vacantly at him as he held the pose. “Student council president, that is.” Comprehension dawned on the teens around the table who all began to clap and cheer. “It won’t be official until after the break, but I think I need something to focus on now that the play is over. Ajay?”

Ajay was pulled out of his thoughts of Bailey in her attire, consisting of leggings, a short skirt, and suspenders, to address Rory. “Yeah?”

“Will you be my campaign manager?”

“Oh, yeah! Of course, Rory!” Ajay gave a quick grin. “You know what would be a great first initiative? Fixing up that old shed in the back courtyard.” Rory’s eyes lit up just as Bailey furrowed her eyebrows. 

“What shed?” she asked. “I’ve never been to the back courtyard.” 

“It’s this gross old building out back. It was supposed to be for storage when the school first opened, but it fell into disrepair. It has all these gross spiders and shit in it. I’d hate to go in there,” Erin explained, shivering at her mind’s image of the shed. 

_ I think it’d be a great place to make out with someone _ , Ajay thought while letting his thoughts drift back to the girl next to him. He was pulled back to the present with a nudge from said girl and several pairs of eyes on him. “What?”

“I agree,” Skye’s voice was the one to break the silence. Ajay blushed and looked around the table. 

“Uh—” he started, but Bailey cut him off. 

“Rory, I’m so happy for you!” she said, getting up to give him a hug. As she wrapped her arms around her friend, Ajay could see his vision going red.  _ Why am I  _ so _ weird about her? She probably likes Rory anyway _ , he thought. He looked up at them and caught Bailey’s eye. There was something challenging and defiant behind her gaze, and it reeled him into her presence. After everyone sat back down and started to pack up their lunches, Bailey leaned over to him and spoke low. 

“You wanna show me the shed?” she asked, and Ajay simply gaped at her straight-forward and downright suggestive tone. “Or maybe I can ask Rory, so he can tell me all about the cool stuff he wants to do in there…”

Ajay’s eyes darkened at her implication and he abruptly stood from the table. Luckily, everyone had left, so he just grabbed his and Bailey’s things before indicating to follow him to the back courtyard. She walked alongside him in the crowded room and he leaned down slightly to talk to her over the noise. 

“You’re gonna regret that.” She felt a chill down her spine at the anticipation.

They reached the shed and Ajay held open the door for Bailey. She stepped inside to survey the room. The wood was breaking on the walls and creaking beneath her feet. She could hear small creatures skittering around the outskirts of the perimeter and after looking at the corners of the building, she saw that Erin wasn’t lying about the spiders. She felt herself being slammed against the rickety door and she realized that Ajay wasn’t lying either. 

He didn’t think that the taste of her lips and the scent of her hair would ever tire him. As he laid every kiss on her neck, his hands wandered down her body trying to memorize each dip and curve. She threaded her hands through his hair and when he found a particularly sensitive part to suck on, she pulled at the thick strands. He detached from her skin and let out a loud moan. He punctuated it with a swear. 

“Fuck.” She decided that she liked how he looked when he swore in these contexts because his eyes rolled back and his mouth fell slightly open. She took the hair pulling information and made sure to pin it in her mind for later use. In the meantime, she took advantage of his exposed and distracted state to unbutton his shirt a little bit more. She slid her hands under his white tee; the weather had finally turned colder to match the season, but he was warm underneath her hands and she relished the feeling of his muscles tensing as she ghosted her fingertips across his skin. She began to pull her hand downward, but he grabbed her wrist before she could reach his metal button. 

“Let me,” he said, and she shuddered at how perfect his voice sounded in her ear. “And I’m going to make you say  _ my _ name. Not Rory’s,  _ mine _ .” She whimpered at his low growl as he unbuttoned her jeans with one hand and caressed her body with the other. The ring of the warning bell sounded out across the courtyard and both teens’ heads snapped up. Ajay took a step away from Bailey, feeling vulnerable at the sudden realization of what they had been doing. She noticed the worried look on his face and took a step closer to him. She reached out a hand to his cheek and stood up on her tip-toes to give him a gentle kiss. She leaned close to his ear. 

“You’re so beautiful, Ajay,” she whispered, and he let out a shaky breath. 

“We...should go,” he said, still refusing to move for fear of losing her touch. She took her hand away anyway and sent him a confused look before grabbing her stuff by the door and leaving without waiting for him. He stood alone with his intrusive thoughts, trapped in the cold of the rundown building.


	14. New Year's

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a new year's party, a meal switch, and a planned sleepover

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! sorry i haven't been updating, I was in a really bad block for a lil bit but with the power of the starbucks atmosphere and coffee, im back babeys! enjoy pls and if you go to starbucks get the java chip frappuccino, it will change your life, also this is a lil bit longer than i usually write just cuz its more of a collection of scenes rather than a whole thing so i hope you like ittttt

“Am I doing something wrong? He’s so confusing,” Bailey lamented to the two girls in her room. Erin spun around in Bailey’s blue desk chair while controlling the music softly playing from a speaker on the desk. Skye was sprawled out on Bailey’s bed while absent-mindedly throwing and catching a pig plushie. Bailey talked about her time in the shed with Ajay and the confusing way he ended it. “I thought I made it _extremely_ clear that I wanted to be with him! Yet he still gives me _extremely_ mixed signals.” Erin stopped spinning and faced her friends just as Skye sat up and elected to hold the plushie in her lap. 

“Listen,” Erin spoke matter-of-factly. “Ajay is incredibly intelligent. He’s an amazing director, he’s great at…communication, and he gets great grades. But he is also a huge dumbass.” Skye’s lip piercing glinted as she nodded her head. 

“I saw on Rory’s story that he’s over at Ajay’s. I guarantee that they’re talking about how Ajay thinks you like Rory more and how he doesn’t stand a chance against him.”

* * *

“She’s just so perfect, man. You’re cool with talking about this, right?” Ajay eyed Rory with caution as he sat in the beanbag chair situated in the corner of the room. 

“Dude, of course. I’m over all that,” Rory said from his spot on the sparsely decorated bed, giving the go-ahead for Ajay to keep talking about his crush. 

“I just don’t want to overstep my bounds with her. She’s probably into you and--”

“Ajay, what the fuck?” Rory started laughing while Ajay just stared in confusion. “She straight up sucked your dick and made out with you in a dirty ass shed and you still think she’s into _me_? You need a new prescription because you’re blind as hell.” Ajay blinked in surprise at how plain Rory made it sound. Rory was still laughing. “She purposely made you jealous of me so that you would go crazy on her. That’s so... _Bailey_.” Ajay felt lost. 

“Wait, that was _intentional_?” Ajay stared incredulously at the floor trying to understand. 

“Ajay! Are you really this stupid?” Rory scoffed at his friend.

“Hey, you know I’m not good with girls or reading situations,” Ajay said, trying to justify himself. Rory’s eyebrow raised. 

“This isn’t a situation, this is a neon sign flashing above Bailey’s head saying ‘MAKE OUT WITH ME, AJAY.’” 

“Rory!”

Rory held up his hands as if surrendering. 

“Fine, I’ll allow your excuse. Seriously, dude, she likes you.” Rory gave Ajay a sure look to try and convince Ajay, who still seemed doubtful. He just didn’t know why she would even like him over Rory. Rory was cool, handsome, and funny. Ajay felt that he was awkward and clumsy, and obviously oblivious. Rory spoke softly. “Hey. Seriously, you’re dope, and she sees that. Own it.” The door to Ajay’s room opened as Mohit pushed it to enter. 

“Dinner’s ready, _bhai_. Hi, Rory,” he said, giving a gap-toothed smile. Rory smiled and waved hello before Mohit disappeared into the hallway. 

“Guess we should head down, huh?” Ajay said, lost in thought. Rory simply nodded and made his way to his friend’s kitchen.

* * *

“I just don’t know how to communicate to him that I want him to ask me out, ya know?” Bailey huffed in frustration. 

“You could ask _him_ out. Be a modern 21st-century woman,” Skye deadpanned and her two friends giggled at the delivery. 

“Trust me, I want to, but with how weird he’s been lately, I don’t want to ask and get shot down and then have everything be awkward. Especially since he’s going to direct the spring musical that I wanna try out for. Everything’s just so _stupid_!” Bailey exclaimed. Casey knocked and entered the room, giving a sweet smile to Erin before addressing his sister, who had thrown herself onto the floor. 

“Sorry to interrupt the crisis, but dinner’s ready,” he said before winking at Erin and walking out again. Skye clapped her hands together and got off the bed. 

“Pancakes for dinner from professional chefs. I knew there was a benefit from being friends with you,” Skye joked. 

“Wow, that’s it?” Bailey looked mock-offended. 

“ _Yup_.”

* * *

The break had passed quickly until it was eventually time for a New Year’s Party at the Golden Griddle. The teens gathered in Bailey’s Booth and reminisced about the past year while waiting for the ball to drop. Erin pulled Bailey aside and talked low to avoid their friends hearing.

“Now’s your chance!” she hissed.

“Chance for _what_?” Bailey whispered back, furrowing her brow.

“In five minutes, that ball is going to drop and couples everywhere are going to be sharing their first kiss of the New Year--” Erin gave a dramatic flourish of her hand, “--and you and Ajay are going to be one of them!” Bailey rolled her eyes and nodded before walking back to their table to avoid suspicion. Ajay sent an interested look to Bailey but didn’t ask. It was time for the countdown. The group gathered around one of the two television screens put up above the breakfast bar to watch the special live program broadcast from Times Square.

Bailey stood close to Ajay and found his hand brushing up against hers. She intertwined their fingers and sent him a quick smile. He responded with a wide grin as everyone started counting down with the crowds of people on TV. As soon as the clock hit 12, Bailey tugged his hand down so he would be at her level and pulled him closer until their lips met. They melted into each other and could only faintly hear the cheers of their friends and the banging of the fireworks outside.

* * *

Ajay took a deep breath to inhale the essence of the auditorium. He’d missed it over break, so he decided to come in early and visit his favorite place in school before it was taken over by discord with the spring musical coming up. He sat in one of the chairs and let his thoughts run.

He and Bailey kept texting each other after the New Year’s Party, but they had resumed the odd limbo where they weren’t sure what their label was. He was desperate to ask her out, but his mind was still consumed by his self-doubt. He wanted to make it perfect for her. He felt that was what she deserved, but he kept overthinking his every move. He was abruptly pulled from his thoughts by a beachy scent.

“Hey.” Bailey sank into the chair next to him. Ajay’s heart pounded as he looked at her smile. He nodded and quirked the corners of his mouth up a little in return. His phone was in his hand and the wire to his earbuds was connected but tangled in a pile on his screen. She gestured to them and leaned a little closer to him so their shoulders were touching. 

“Can I listen?” she asked, blinking her eyes at him. He quickly fumbled with the wire trying to detangle it, and once he succeeded, he handed the right earbud to her. She gave him another small smile as the music flowered between them, covering up their hitched breaths and loud heartbeats as the teens moved closer and closer with each passing song.

* * *

Erin threw an arm around Ajay as the pair walked down the hall to their next class. 

“Ajay! What’s up?” Erin exclaimed. He jumped slightly before giving a small laugh at his friend.

“Nothing much, king, what’s up with you?” Ajay responded cooly, making her giggle at his brief persona. 

“I’ve been thinking and we should do another sleepover! Like the cast party! Bailey should host again, she’s so good at it.” Erin sent a sly smile at Ajay, who looked lost in thought. “Ajay?”

He looked down at the floor as he walked at the mention of that night with Bailey in the kitchen. His face heated up as he remembered what her legs felt like wrapped around his waist, her smile in the near-darkness as she pressed desperate kisses to his skin and grabbed at his hair. They had gotten endless teasing from the others when they all woke up to see Ajay and Bailey in a sleeping bag together. He couldn’t help but yearn for the overwhelming warmth of her skin on his. His attention was brought back to Erin as she elbowed him in the ribs. 

“Ow! What did you say?” Ajay yelped and rubbed his stomach where she hit him. 

“Do you wanna do it? I’ll even get you and Bailey a bigger sleeping bag…” Erin teased as Ajay rolled his eyes before sitting in his seat and tried to ignore his rampant thoughts about Bailey. The class passed quickly and soon it was time for lunch with his friends and the subject of so much of his daydreams. He sat in the slightly uncomfortable cafeteria seats and unpacked his leftover tandoori chicken and naan as Bailey unpacked her bowl of chicken long rice her father, a Hawaiin native, made her. At the same time, they both curiously pointed to the other’s lunch and asked, “What’s that?” 

Ajay smiled and told Bailey what his lunch consisted of. “You’ve never had Indian food?” he asked. She shook her head and gazed at his meal. He took his fork and tuck it through a piece of chicken, offering it to Bailey. Instead of grabbing the fork, she closed her lips around the food and at it off the utensil. The act was purely casual and normal, but Ajay’s mind shut out the rest of his surroundings as he heard loud warning bells in his head. He watched her chew as if she wasn’t affected by the unexpected intimacy of her action. She swallowed and smiled. 

“That’s crazy good! I like the spices. And, wait, I’ve heard of that.” She pointed to the small piece of flatbread in a Tupperware. “Naan bread, right?” He broke out into a grin and nodded before offering another piece of his meal. She gladly took it and hummed at the delicious food. He couldn’t help but feel relieved that he didn’t have to directly feed her again; he didn’t think he could handle it. To change the subject, he pointed at her own meal. 

“May I ask what that is?” he asked, peering at the yellowish rice topped with vegetables. 

“Hawaiin chicken long rice. My father’s family is from there, so he knows the delicacies,” she explained while expertly grabbing a heap with her chopsticks and putting it close to his lips. He hesitantly opened his mouth and took the food from her sticks, savoring the vibrant flavors dancing on his tongue. He closed his eyes to experience more of it and was unaware of Bailey staring at him. She watched him with a soft look in her eyes and resisted the urge to take his hand in hers. His hands looked so nimble with his long fingers, and she thought of how they felt on her skin in the dressing room. A few stray noodles peeked out of his closed mouth and he swiped his tongue over his lips to catch them. She knew the action didn’t mean anything but she couldn’t help but imagine more. 

She thought of his tongue swiping across her lips, aching for more access to her. His hands would run up her waits, and she’d shiver with anticipation over where they would drift next. She’d play with the hair at the nape of his neck as he would nip at her skin, causing her to moan and he’d say--

“Bailey, this is amazing! Your parents are so gifted,” he exclaimed, turning to her with wide eyes filled with childlike glee. She gave a small laugh, only barely tinged with her embarrassment at being caught daydreaming. Ajay didn’t seem to notice as he cleaned his fork, stuck it in her dish, and spun it around to get another heap of the rice. Bailey playfully gasped and grabbed his fork between her chopsticks. 

“Just _what_ do you think you’re doing?” she scolded, trying to keep a serious face. 

“I’m just trying to get some of your delicious food. What do you think _you’re_ doing?” he shot back, deftly maneuvering his fork out of her grasp and eating the noodles before she could object further. She laughed and got her revenge by stealing a piece of his chicken. “Lunch switch?” he asked, raising his eyebrows and making a pleading face at her bowl. 

“Sure!” she agreed and Ajay’s eyes lit up before quickly moving their small plates around. As he prepared to dig in, she gently took his wrist in her hand. 

“Use my chopsticks. My dad swears that it tastes better that way,” she said, grabbing his fork and replacing it with her sticks. He looked down at her helplessly. “You can’t use them?” she asked.

“Uh, nope. I’m not very cultured, I know,” he said, a sheepish grin plastered on his face. She returned a genuine smile and delicately corrected his hand placement. Soon, he was accurately using them and eating quickly. She returned to appreciating her own meal. 

“Bailey, we on for yours at 7 tomorrow? For the cast party sleepover, part 2?” Erin called from down the table. Bailey nodded and turned to Ajay. 

“You’re coming, right?” she asked.

“Yeah, of course. I wouldn’t miss it for the world.” She gave him a wide lopsided grin before throwing away the trash from her meal. Finally, they both had something to look forward to.


	15. The Pool Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A heated pool with a heated confession

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! I hope you guys like this chapter!! I can see that the end of this fic is very near but i'm still lookin for my exit sign so idk yall. anyway enjoy pls!!!

“I completely forgot your family was rich, Skye,” Ajay blurted and blinked in surprise upon entering the large foyer. She gave a tentative smile to the group of teenagers gathered in her house. 

‘Thanks,” she said before leading everyone to the pool in the ward. “It’s heated, so don’t worry about the weather, you’ll be warm,” she explained and took her black tank top off to reveal a simple dark one-piece swimsuit.

Before heading to Bailey’s, Skye offered a small pool party since her family would be out of town. Everyone eagerly agreed and got swimsuits from abandoned bins reserved for summer attire. Ajay shamefully admitted to himself that he was most excited to see Bailey half-naked again. As they shivered around the steaming pool in the cold temperature, he watched her out of the corner of his eye, waiting for her to get undressed. 

_Maybe this won’t be as good of an idea as I think it will be,_ he thought as he looked down at his own swimming trunks and bare chest. _What if she doesn’t like how I look? Wait no, she’s already seen you and liked you._ He tried talking himself off the ledge. _She could have changed her mind!_ His thoughts stopped as he saw Bailey pull up the hem of her shirt and began to undress.

Ajay couldn’t help but feel like a huge pervert as he watched her take her clothes off in what felt like slow motion. Her bikini top left nothing to the imagination with its skin-tight properties and numerous cutouts. She shook her hair out of its loose bun as she took her pants off to reveal her high waisted bottoms with matching cutouts to her top. She let out a laugh at something Erin said next to her, and Ajay felt hopeless in trying to hide how she made him feel just from watching her pull up her waist of her bottoms and adjust her top. _God, what is wrong with me?_

Rory gave him a small nudge. “You okay?” Ajay turned to him, eyebrows knit and breath fast. 

“She’s so hot!” Ajay said it a little too loudly, prompting a stare from Bailey. 

“Thanks,” she answered with a subtle wink. She quickly called attention away from his awkward burst by taking a jump into the water. Everyone else followed. Ajay stuck close to the wall because of the seats formed from cement against it under the water, and Bailey swam over to him. She sat next to him, the only sound coming from the dripping of water from her face into the pool. She broke their silence. 

“Hey.”

“Hello,” he said, but he mentally kicked himself. _Hello? What kind of greeting is that?_

“You enjoying the pool?” she asked. She moved slightly closer to him and he felt his skin grow hot despite a slight breeze blowing against his cheeks. 

“Yeah, you?” He tried to keep his tone casual as she gently rested her hand on his thigh under the water. 

“The water’s nice. It looks like Erin and Casey are enjoying themselves,” she responded, gesturing to where her brother had Erin up on his shoulders to play chick with Rory and Skye. Casey had begged to come along to the pool when he heard his crush was coming, so he caught a ride with Rory. 

“Yeah, I’m glad he came along. It’s been a while since Erin has been happy with a guy,” he said. Bailey begins to absent-mindedly draw small circles on Ajay’s skin. 

“It’s a good thing I have a good guy, too.” Her heart pounded at how forward she was being, and she kept glancing at him out of the corner of her eye until he spoke. 

“Yeah, Rory’s great,” Ajay responded casually, but he immediately regretted saying it. _Why would you say that you absolute moron?_ He thought. She ripped her hand away from his leg and huffed in frustration. She turned her gaze on him, eyes flashing. 

“I mean you, you fucking idiot.” Her shoulders slumped and she looked helplessly at her hands, previous anger dissipated. Ajay tried to reach for her hand and speak to clear things up, but she wrenched her hand away again. “God, maybe I should just give up! You’ve probably been giving hints that you don’t like me, but I’ve been ignoring them in favor of my stupid little rosy world where you wanted to be with me. 

“I like you so much that every time I see you, I lose my breath. My hands get sweaty and my stomach starts hurting, and I don’t think I can go ten minutes without thinking about being alone with you.” Bailey’s voice was loud now and reverberated across the pool. Their friends had stopped playing and were watching Ajay and Bailey’s conversation. Casey made a move to swim over to his sister, but Erin put a hand on his bicep to pull him back. “Well, I get the hints now. I’ll leave you the fuck alone.” She punctuated her point by quickly climbing out of the pool and grabbing a towel on her way to the pool house kitchen. Without a thought, Ajay raced after Bailey, not caring that he would drip water everywhere. He just needed to make her feel better and fix things. 

He closed the door behind him and found her quietly crying as she sipped her glass of water at the kitchen bar. 

“Bailey?” he spoke softly to avoid scaring her away. She hastily wiped her tears and took a long drink of her water. 

“I’m sorry, but I’m not in the mood for your pity,” she said, grip tightening on her cup. 

“Bailey, I’m not here to--” he started but she cut him off. 

“I’m serious, Ajay. If you’re here to let me down easy, or whatever, then I’m not--” 

“Dammit, Bailey, can you listen to me?” he didn’t raise his voice but his tone still shocked her. He reserved that voice for unruly actors during tech week and if she got him riled up enough, their small periods of alone time. She watched him as he struggled to find the words he needed. “All that time in the dressing rooms? Or the shed? Or your _kitchen_? Bailey, my days are filled with these amazing times with you because I haven't been able to get my mind off Bailey mode since I saw you at auditions. 

“And it hasn’t just been those times either. At the auditorium when we got locked in? Or the New Year’s Party? Or when we switched lunches yesterday? Your laugh makes me lose all ability to coherently speak, and I lose all executive functions when you even brush against me. The beach is my new favorite scent because of you,” he finished his speech and ran his hands through his hair. 

“Then why do you keep mentioning Rory?” she asked exasperatedly and threw her hands up. 

“Because he’s so much better for you. You guys have been friends forever, and he’s so cool and funny. You deserve someone like that instead of--” He began to ramble but didn’t notice that she had gotten off her chair and positioned her face mere inches away from his. She closed the gap quickly until their lips met and he made a small noise of muffled surprise before melting into her touch. 

“Ajay, _you’re_ perfect for me and nothing you say will change that. You’re so smart and sweet, and you make me laugh every day. Plus--” she pulled the drawstring on his trunks so that his body was pressed against hers, “--it helps that you’re incredibly hot.” He gave her a wicked smile and picked her up with no effort. She let out a small laugh as he walked over to the counter and set her down on the marble to continue kissing down her neck. Her hands flew up to his own neck and roughly pulled at the thick hair there when he reached a sensitive spot. He pulled away suddenly and looked at her, both of them flushed and panting. 

“You wanna go out with me?” he asked, gaze meandering over her body. 

“Ajay!” 

“What? Figured that if we aren’t by now, I might as well ask formally.”   
  
“I would love to go out with you, Ajay.” He broke out in a grin and leaned forward to continue kissing her and massage her thighs as she sat. His lips continued their path downward, drifting towards the waistband of her bottoms before he pulled away again. Her moans of pleasure turned into groans of annoyance. 

“Just to be clear…” he gave her a shit-eating grin that told her he knew _exactly_ what he was doing to her. “...that means you’re officially my girlfriend, right?”

“ _Ajay!_ ” she exclaimed. 

“I’m not continuing this until I hear your answer,” his expression turned serious and she felt a shiver go down her spine as he grabbed her chin to hold her gaze. She placed her hands on the side of his face and looked him in the eye. 

“I’m all yours, baby.” She brought his face in for a gentle kiss before he turned the heat up and drifted his kisses lower and lower on her body.

* * *

“You guys okay?” Erin was the first to see the new couple walking back to the pool hand-in-hand.

“Well, you’re now looking at the new Mr. and Mrs. Ajay Bhandari!” Bailey held their intertwined hands in the air as if she was announcing his wrestling win. Upon seeing her friends’ confused faces, she broke out in laughter. “Guys, please chill. We are together, though,” she glanced up at him and gave a smile, “officially.”

The group gave a bunch of whoops and hollers from the water. 

“Well, I’m getting pruney, so I’m down for a party relocation. All agree?” Skye asked and was answered by confirmation from her friends as they all climbed out of the pool and ran to the pool house to avoid the cold.


	16. Final Bows

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The finale complete with sweet nothings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi! as you can see, this is the final chapter of this fic, but that doesn't mean these characters wont return!! please enjoy this fic as much as i did in the months it took to write it my loves!! Also this is a little bit shorter just because I really wanted to completely wrap it up you know, so pls forgive me lmao

As they arrived at Bailey’s, Ajay took her hand. 

“Hey,” he said, offering a shy smile. She squeezed his hand and responded with a grin. 

“Hi.”

“You ready?” he asked, worried about meeting her parents as her boyfriend instead of just her director. She took a deep breath but held his gaze. 

“Yep.” She pressed a gentle kiss to his lips. 

They exited the car and walked into her house with their hands still intertwined. Her mother raised her eyebrows at the sight but said nothing as she exchanged a series of looks with her husband. 

“Who is ready for a movie, guys?” Erin exclaimed excitedly. Casey put an arm around her shoulders and laughed, prompting yet another look shared between the adults. 

“Why don’t you guys set up the movie, and my kids can get their _guests_ some snacks. Drink orders?” Bailey’s mom was answered by a chorus of thanks and beverages as she pulled the twins into the kitchen. “Alright, you two. Spill.” She narrowed her eyes playfully and crossed her arms. 

“Ajay asked me out!” Bailey blurted out and smiled when her mom clapped happily. 

“Finally! I was about to sit that boy down and--” 

“Mom!”

“Okay, okay. You!” She turned to Casey and jabbed a finger into his chest. She had to look up at him due to his large build and height, but she still made him feel small with her stern look. 

“I really like Erin and I’m thinking of asking her out…” Casey rushed out. Their mom raised her eyebrows before breaking out into a smile. 

“Good, I like Erin for you. Good girl,” she nodded her approval. “Wait! I forgot, your father is out there with Ajay.” Bailey paled and peeked out of the door to the living room. She could see her father and her boyfriend clearly from her position and began to worry about how nervous the latter looked. Ajay’s eyes were wide and Bailey could practically hear his heart racing. She hurriedly prepared the drinks and took them out to her friends, successfully interrupting her father’s conversation in the process. 

“You better not be grilling him, Dad,” she narrowed her eyes similarly to her mother and delicately put a hand on Ajay’s shoulder. She felt his muscles briefly relax under her touch.

“I’m not! I think he’s a nice young man,” her father scoffed and winked at Ajay, who gave him a nervous smile. Bailey hummed and shooed her parents out of the living room so the party could commence. The gang decided on another horror movie, to which Ajay jumped at with every scare. Bailey held him closer and whispered in his ear. 

“You okay, scaredy-cat?” she taunted and he scrunched his nose up to reveal his dimple. She quickly pressed her pointer finger into the indentation in his skin, causing him to rapidly blink in surprise at the soft action. “Sorry, it’s just so cute,” she said, moving her hand up to gently stroke his hair. She liked how thick the locks were and how his head always smelled faintly of coconut. He pushed his glasses up his nose and gently pressed his lips to her forehead. 

“What did you and Casey talk about with your mom in the kitchen?” he spoke low in her ear to avoid interrupting the movie. 

“How you and I aren't allowed alone in there because of the last time you were over here.” 

“What?!”

“I’m kidding.” She let out a giggle at his surprised look. “Just about you and me in general. Plus, Casey is planning on asking Erin out tonight. My mom approves; she said Erin was a ‘good girl.’”

“I think you’re a good girl, too,” he leaned in closer to her and squeezed her tighter against him. His voice was husky and sent a shiver down Bailey’s spine despite being under a thick blanket surrounded by his body heat. She moved her hand closer to his stomach and lifted his shirt up slightly under the blanket. His breath hitched as she lightly traced her fingertips over his abs causing the muscles to tense the lower her hand drifted. She teased him by moving closer to the band of his jeans, lingering on his button for a few seconds, and then continuing her path upwards towards his chest. 

“Well, you’re working hard on changing my mind, though, aren’t you?” he growled before moving his own hand underneath the blanket to grab hers. Slowly, he guided her hand underneath his jeans but over his boxers, and she breathed heard at just how little fabric was separating them. He directed her hand where he wanted and let out a low moan in her ear before moving her hand up again. She gave a sweet kiss on the cheek and leaned closer to him. 

“I think we have a lot to look forward to, boyfriend.”

“As do I, girlfriend.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lemme write this before I completely sob. So this was my first real multi chapter fic and I'll be forever grateful to the people in my life who totally believed in me and care about this writing. but especially thank you @rulesofthebeneath, for totally gassing me up and giving me the dream of meeting one of my favorite fic writers, you're one of my biggest motivators and inspirations *heart emojisssssss*


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